


The Princely Type

by sailortwilightt



Category: Miraculous Ladybug, Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types
Genre: Adrinette, Exchange program AU, F/M, I'm gonna avoid using spoilers in this tho, Kiss Kiss Fall in Love, Miraculous Ladybug - Freeform, and they were ROOMMATES, but basically, exchange student program au, god damn rich people, haruki?? is that a thing, ohshc, shit gets wild yall trust me, starting today you're a host, water never hurts people right
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-09-23 21:01:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 20,230
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20346649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sailortwilightt/pseuds/sailortwilightt
Summary: A foreign exchange program takes two French students to the most prestigious and elite school in Japan, where they stumble into a colorful group of boys (and girl)





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello.
> 
> I've come to let you know that I don't own any of the following characters. They all are created and owned by their respective creators,
> 
> Thomas Astruc and Bisco Hatori.
> 
> I can only say that the idea of the fan fiction is my own idea. Who knows, maybe someone's thought of the same idea and if they have, well, I haven't seen it lol. Anyway, I didn't include spoilers in the tags, but thanks for tagging along in this ride.

_"A foreign exchange student program?"_

"Yeah! I heard that students are going to take a test to determine if they are eligible to go in. The school you will be going to will be a prestigious school in Japan, so only the kids with brain smarts can go." Alya showed Marinette the flyer.

"I don't know, Alya. Going to Japan for a school year? What if I get into the program and then I have to leave you behind and, and how am I going to get my clippings of Adrien?"

Alya rolled her eyes. "Oh, c'mon Mari, it won't be _that _bad. I promise to scan any clippings we have and email them to you, how about that?"

Marinette looked at the flyer, then back at Alya hesitantly. "I don't know..." She mumbled.

Alya chuckled and nudged her shoulder against Marinette's. "Alright, I have an idea. How about we both sign up and take the test? Who knows, maybe we can get lucky and we both get to go to Japan for a year." Alya nudged her shoulder more until Marinette's hesitant look surrendered into a smile.

"Alright, alright, fine." Marinette nudged her away and Alya hugged her, vocalizing her excitement with a squeal.

_"An exchange student program to Japan?"_

"It's a wonderful opportunity. Plus, there's a talented batch of students at that school, and it would benefit not just you, but the Agreste name, if you start making acquaintances in Japan." Gabriel Agreste told his son over the phone. He wasn't even present to tell him this. He had Nathalie schedule a call for him and show him the flyer over breakfast.

"That..." There was a hum in question over the line that dared Adrien to object. "That sounds wonderful, father. I'll ask Nathalie to look into the details for the program."

"Splendid. I'll speak to you later." The call ended before Adrien was able to say good-bye or give any response of hopeful approval that he would hear from his father again.

"Nathalie?" Adrien asked.

"I'm looking into the details of the program already." She was tapping into her tablet with her pen.

"Thank you." Adrien sighed, pushing around some food on his plate. He'd lost his appetite.

Nathalie noticed this and sighed softly. She pulled the chair out beside Adrien and sat down, taking one of Adrien's hands.

"Listen Adrien, I know that you're not looking forward to being whisked away to Japan for a year to make more business for your father, but think of it this way," she scooted closer. "The first couple months of your stay in Japan would collide with a fashion project your father will be hosting. So, think of it as... a little vacation, away from home and work."

Adrien perked at the sound of that. "So that means... I won't be attending photo shoots, or doing any modeling?"

Nathalie shook her head. "School policies say that you can't have a job while attending school." Adrien brightened. "Although I'm sure your father could bend the school to their will, he won't be able to get his hands on you for a couple months."

"And it wouldn't be... Online classes?" All Adrien has ever known was being stuck in his home, with no permissions to do public schooling. Only home schooling, private instructors and online classes.

"No, Adrien." Nathalie chuckled sympathetically. "You're going to be attending a private school with other students. It's the change you wanted."

Adrien couldn't help but smile. "Did you know about all of this?"

She nodded. "I figured you needed a little vacation."

Adrien's smiled widened and he hugged her. "Thank you, Nathalie!"

_A couple months later..._

Marinette groaned when her phone started ringing. It was a chime she was all too familiar with, and when she called, it always meant something big was happening. Marinette answered the call, not bothering to say a greeting since she knew she would be interrupted.

"Have you checked your mail yet?" Alya asked.

"No, why?"

"Result letters came in."

Marinette froze before she started rushing down the stairs. She nearly tumbled down, but she gathered her footing, quickly descending the stairs. Her mother looked at her curiously.

"Marinette? What's wrong?" Sabine asked.

"Mama, have you checked the mail?"

Sabine nodded, pointing to the counter, where the mail was laying. "I haven't checked it yet, but I believe there's a letter in there for you." Marinette went to the counter and flipped through the various envelopes until she found the one with her name. Marinette brought her phone back to her ear.

"So, did you get it?"

"Yeah, I'm holding it in my hands right now." Marinette replied.

"At the same time?"

"Let's do it." Marinette picked up the letter opener and tucked it under the flap, sliding it across the envelope and set it down. She took the letter out and waited as she heard Alya still tearing her envelope. "You didn't rip up your letter, did you?" Marinette teased and Alya tutted annoyingly.

"Alright, we'll read them at the same time?"

"Yup." Marinette agreed.

"Okay, on three? One, two..."

"Three." Marinette unfolded her letter and she started to read it. There was a couple seconds of silence and Marinette's eyes widened as she continued reading. "Oh my god..."

"What, did you get rejected too?" Alya sighed.

"'Dear Miss Marinette Dupain-Cheng, we are pleased to inform you that you have been selected as a candidate for the foreign exchange program to Japan'." Marinette read and Alya gasped on the line.

"No way! You made it in!" She nearly shouted. "But a candidate? Will there be more students going too?" Marinette's eyes scanned the rest of the letter.

"Yeah, it seems like there's going to be another student going to Japan with me, but their name isn't mentioned."

"Probably for privacy." Alya mumbled and Marinette nodded. "But I can't believe that you made it in!" Alya squealed.

_Meanwhile_

"Okay, are you ready?" Nathalie held the envelope in her hands, Adrien nodding next to her.

"Ready." She gave a nod and she opened the envelope and took out the letter, her eyes scanning. Adrien stared at her expression, wishing, _praying _for a vacation.

"Oh, Adrien." Nathalie said, almost downcast. Adrien's shoulders fell slightly. "You made it in!" She smiled.

Adrien sighed in relief and he hugged Nathalie. "Don't do that, oh my god." He chuckled, and Nathalie chuckled softly, patting Adrien's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, but I'm glad you're getting a little bit of a break." She brushed his hair out of his face. "Time to brush up on your Japanese now, don't you think?"

_Several months later_

"You will behave, won't you?"

"Mama, what does that mean?"

Sabine chuckled and kissed her daughter on the forehead. "It's just that we're... we're gonna miss you." Tom was beginning to sob softly.

"Oh, papa, don't cry, you're gonna make me cry." Marinette fluttered to hug her large sobbing father.

"Mama said, that whenever Mama Sabine and Papa Bear go to Japan to visit, I'm allowed to tag along, so don't have too much fun while you're gone." Alya mentioned as Marinette went back to her luggage. Alya patted Marinette's shoulder and sidled up close. "So, keep an eye out for boys, okay?" She winked, and Marinette rolled her eyes.

"Shut up." She muttered, pushing Alya away.

"You've got everything, right?" Sabine asked. "Your map and your Japanese travel guide and translation book?" Sabine went on listing things and Marinette would check her satchel for everything her mother listed.

"I've got everything." Marinette nodded. They all stared at Marinette silently.

"Be safe, my dear. Send us a message when you arrive, yes?"

"M-My b-baby is... is leaving!"

"Have fun in Japan, girl! We'll see you soon."

Marinette wished goodbye to her family and friend, making it to her terminal. The attendant checked her ticket and motioned Marinette to go in. Marinette looked back and waved a final goodbye to her family, headed toward the plane.

Marinette was lucky to get a window seat and she managed to catch a nonstop flight to Tokyo. It was a horrid twelve-hour flight, but it was much better than a connecting flight that would have added another four hours to her trip. Since Marinette hadn't slept at all the previous night due to nerves and excitement about her trip, she nearly slept through the whole flight.

An early departure from France led to late afternoon arrival in Tokyo. Marinette managed to get a taxi and requested to be taken to the hotel the program booked her in in Bunkyo, which was a couple streets down from the school. When she got to the hotel, her Japanese was starting to fail her.

"Oh my god, how am I going to check in if I can't figure how to say this correctly?" Marinette mumbled to herself.

"Need a hand?" A crystal, clear voice in French was right beside her and she sighed in relief.

"Oh, please." She begged softly. She searched into her bag for her wallet, so she could give it to the receptionist while the boy beside her spoke in perfect Japanese. Oh, this boy was such a blessing to speak French and Japanese.

"The receptionist would like to see your ID." He said. She nodded and fished out her identification card, sliding it onto the counter. And that's when her Japanese was starting to kick in.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng? You're here for the exchange program, correct?" The receptionist asked.

"Ah, yes!" The receptionist nodded and tapped into the desktop.

"The other student that's in the exchange program will be sharing a hotel room with you, it's a two-bedroom suite that the two of you will stay in, is that okay?"

Marinette tilted her head to the side. She didn't know who the other person was yet, but she guessed she had to meet them later. "Yes, that's fine." She nodded, the receptionist sliding her back her ID.

"The other student hasn't arrived yet, so-"

"Actually, that would be me." The boy next to her slid his ID next to hers and she looked at it as she started to take hers back. The blond hair and dazzling smile looked familiar. She didn't get to read the name, but she felt like she already knew who it was.

"Adrien Agreste?"

She just didn't want to believe it.

"Yes, that's me."

Marinette turned to look at him. She hadn't before, since she was trying to fish for her wallet, but now that she had it in her hand, she looked up at person beside her.

Broad shoulders, blonde hair, a handsomely developing jawline and cheekbones, and dazzling emerald eyes. _Oh my lord, it's Adrien fucking Agreste._

"Wonderful, now the two exchange students have arrived." The receptionist started to tap Adrien's information into the desktop and he turned slightly towards Marinette.

"So, you're going to be my new roommate for the year, huh?" His smile was nearly blinding. "I'm-"

"A-Adrien Agreste, son and model of Gabriel Agreste, owner of the Agreste Design." She blabbered in French. He blinked a bit, giving a confused smile. "I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

"You're French?"

_His voice is so smooth. _She nodded too quickly for her tastes. "Y-Yes! W-Well, actually, I'm half French and half Chinese, from my mama's side."

His eyebrows rose in surprise and he started to speak fluent Mandarin.

_How many languages does this boy know, he's so talented. _Marinette chuckled nervously. "I-I... My Mandarin may be a little rusty..."

He chuckled, taking his ID back from the receptionist. "Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I'm just so excited that my roommate is French."

The receptionist directed them to their room and a bellhop assisted them with their bags. A paid for hotel by the school, meant a fancy hotel. Grand hallways with chandeliers and televisions on every other wall. Adrien seemed pretty used to the fancy, but Marinette was swept away.

When they arrived at their rooms, it was more like an apartment, than a hotel room. "A _full _kitchen?" Marinette squawked as they were welcomed into the room. She quickly covered her mouth and blushed, before making a beeline to the kitchen. A full refrigerator, a stove, oven (although it was small), a microwave, even a dishwasher. "It's perfect."

Adrien watched her in slight amusement, leaning on the kitchen island as he watched her buzz about. "Are you a cook?"

She jumped and turned to his voice with a blush. "N-Not really?" She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Have you heard of Tom and Sabine's Boulangerie Patisserie?"

Adrien hummed thoughtfully. "Is that the popular little bakery that's across the park?"

She nodded. "My parents own that bakery."

His eyes sparkled slightly. "I've always heard a lot about that bakery, but..." His expression dulled slightly. "My father would never allow me to go, since breads and pastries are fattening." He mumbled.

Marinette's heart fluttered with pain for him. "I'm usually down there, helping my papa cook and bake pastries, so it's become kind of a stress reliever to bake, so..." She shrugged slightly. "I can bake for you since... S-Since we will be living here." It just hit Marinette.

The two of them... Living together... Together... For a _year. _Juuuuuuuuuust the two of them.

"Really?" Marinette's eyes went back to Adrien Agreste's sparkling-like-a-child's face.

A blush exploded on her face as realization hit."E-Excuse me!" She squeaked as she ran to her own room. She shut the door behind her and slid down the length of it. _Ohboy. Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy, oh boy._


	2. Chapter 2

"Can you _please _stop yelling?"

Marinette could see that the phone was pulled away a distance until she lowered her voice. "It's just, I, Alya..." Marinette groaned, dropping herself back on her bed.

"So, let me get this straight," Alya started. "You get to Japan, you get to your hotel, you completely blank on the Japanese you've been studying-"

"It was a long flight!" Marinette tried to defend herself.

"You completely blank on the Japanese you've been studying for for months," Alya reiterated loudly. "A boy who miraculously speaks perfect French also speaks perfect Japanese, and checks you in, somehow manages to be the one. The only. Adrien Agreste."

"Adrien fucking Agreste." Marinette whispered, covering her face with her hands.

Alya remains silent for a bit before she begins to laugh. "What luck you have."

"Shut up." Marinette grumbles.

After more laughter and berating from her best friend, Marinette decided to tour the hotel room.

A two bedroom suite, each room with their own private bathroom. A small living space with a television, a small balcony, a fully equipped kitchen (that Marinette would take full advantage of later), a full fridge that was already full of food.

"Are you hungry?"

A voice startled Marinette out of an also stocked pantry and she turned around, to see the aforementioned blond. "A-Adrien, I-I, uh, hungry?" She babbled.

Alya, who she was still FaceTiming with, gasped and immediately called out to other. "Hey! Hello! I heard you're Marinette's new roommate! Why don't you introduce me to your new roommate, Marinette?" Alya cooed.

"Shut up!" She whisper shouted before ending the call and shoving her phone into her back pocket. She looked up at Adrien, who was looking at her with a slightly confused, yet entertained expression.

"Sorry, about that." Marinette laughed awkwardly. "My friend likes to tease me about a lot of things."

"It's alright." Adrien chuckled. "You can introduce me later." He winked as he moved into the pantry.

Marinette sidled out of the way as he came closer. "Um, about my cooking, I don't do a lot of it, but I do mostly baking. I can cook, but a lot of my skills lie in baking."

Adrien was pulling out a lame excuse of a snack from the pantry, but his eyes were sparkling. "It's always been a dream of mine to go." He replied.

Marinette chuckles softly. "What a nice dream." And to think that her own dream was occurring before her very eyes. "I could... always make you something?"

Puppy eyes and waggy tail galore. "Would you?" He asked excitingly.

Marinette needed to clutch her heart in order to stop it from melting. "Y-Yes!"

It was maybe an hour and a half later, and Marinette was pulling some croissants out from the oven.

"I'm sorry, this is all I could make right now. Our kitchen is lacking some supplies." Marinette said, wiping her face of some flour.

Adrien had been buzzing around, watching her the whole time. He was about to reach for one when Marinette slapped his hand.

"They need to cool down, unless you wanna burn yourself." She chided.

Adrien's puppy eyes made her gasp. "I'm sorry, it's just, they're, uh, really hot!"

Adrien's pout remained on his face for a while and Marinette was already going through _another _mental breakdown before he smiled.

"I'm sorry, I'm just impatient."

Marinette sighed softly. "I'll clean up and then you can have one."

"Oh, let me help!" Adrien was already making his way to the sink and Marinette zoomed to get between them.

"No!" She shouted.

Adrien rose a curious eyebrow. "No? Why not?" He asked.

"I-I, um, I mean... Why would I make you wash dishes, I mean, you..."

Adrien watched her as she stumbled for words. "Just because I'm _the _Adrien Agreste, doesn't mean I can't help wash dishes with you. A little water never hurt somebody. " He smiled and stepped around her and started to work on the dishes.

_Okay, Marinette... don't put him on such a high pedestal... _She took a deep breath and went to go help him.

The job was done a lot faster with two pairs of hands, rather than one, and Marinette was now presenting Adrien with her own, homemade croissant.

"They're not exactly like my parents', but it's close enough."

Marinette watched in anticipation as Adrien lifted the croissant up to his lips and took a bite.

There was a moment of absolute silence, where Adrien closed his eyes and chewed slowly. Marinette was biting her lip, internally pulling her hair, already expecting the worst.

She watched as he swallowed the first bite and her heart stopped. Then, his eyes opened and they were sparkles.

"Wow, Marinette! This, these taste great!" Adrien exclaimed, taking another bite. "So flaky, is like they're..." he smacks his lips a bit. "It's like they're melting in my mouth."

Marinette could disintegrate. "You... You think those are good, just wait until you try the real deal." She rubbed her arm lightly.

"Your real deal is just as good, I bet." He nudged her gently.

"O-Oh... Thanks, Adrien." She could explode in peace now.

Adrien has another croissant before putting the rest away, murmuring something about wanting to make them last.

The two bid each other good night, before going to bed.

Marinette was very convinced that this was nothing but a very sweet dream, one she didn't want to wake up from. But, her alarm sang it's pitiful song for her to wake up, successfully rousing her from her sleep.

Either she was still dreaming, or maybe, this was real life, because she woke up in a bed that wasn't hers. And in the closet that was right across her bed, was a lemon bundt cake of a dress.

She rolled out of bed and the room was so unfamiliar. The faintest smell of baked bread that lingered in the air, and out of her window, the scenery was much more different.

So... if this wasn't a dream, then that means...

Marinette stumbled her way out to the living room, and was greeted with the sight of Adrien, roaming around the kitchen in a white tee and black sweatpants.

The boy heard the door open and he looked back at her, half a croissant hanging from his mouth. "Good morning!" Were the muffled words that came out of his mouth.

Marinette thinks she gave a polite good morning before she dove into her room, shut her door, and hid under her blankets.

Yup. This was no dream.


	3. Chapter 3

After a brief period of embarrassment, Marinette ate breakfast and got ready for school.

She wasn't a big fan of the female uniform, the puffiness, and the stockings, but she wore it nonetheless. If she was being honest, she would rather wear the male uniform, but that's probably not allowed, right?

"The school is a bit far for us to walk, maybe we can get a public transport?" Marinette asks, looking down at the map on her phone.

"No need to. Nathalie arranged for me to have a driver pick me up to and from school." Adrien says, fixing his bag over his shoulder. "Who am I to not allow you a ride with me?" He questions.

Marinette smiles. "Thanks. That would certainly save us a lot of trouble." She laughs lightly, putting her phone away.

Only those with excellent social standing and those with filthy rich families are lucky enough to spend their time at the elite, private school, Ouran Academy.

"Congratulations to the two of you. I am more than thrilled to welcome to two of you to Ouran Academy." An older gentleman, who introduced himself as Yuzuru Suoh, president of Ouran Academy, welcomed them in.

"Thank you for having us!" Marinette smiled.

"We are more than pleased to have two new students under our wing." He said, inviting them to sit down at the couches across him.

Marinette and Adrien take their seats as Mr. Suoh keeps talking.

"Ouran Academy is always proud to give excellent students a chance enroll in our school. It always opens a window of opportunities to be a part of our school community. As scholarship students, I invite you to class 1-A. There, we have another scholarship student, Haruhi Fujioka. A great student who has a full ride until university, I'm sure you can get along with them well."

The school was grand, much bigger than either Marinette or Adrien were both used to. Still, with Marinette's trusty map, the two of them managed to find classroom 1-A, with a student expecting them outside.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien Agreste?" The male asked, adjusting his glasses on his nose. "I'm Soga Kazukiyo, your classroom president. Nice to meet you."

The class president took responsibility of introducing the two of them to the class. Marinette was no stranger to the whispers and glances they were receiving. Well... The ones that Adrien was receiving.

"You can sit in the back of the room, with Haruhi and the Hitachiin brothers." Soga continued.

The last name rang a bell with Marinette and Soga asked for Haruhi to raise their hand. The two of them went to the back, where they were greeted by a small, somewhat feminine boy, and a pair of twins.

"Hi, I'm Haruhi." Greeted the non-twin. "And this one is Trouble, and that's Make it Double." They pointed at each twin.

"Hey!" They both sang.

Marinette giggled. "I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

"And I'm Adrien Agreste." He greeted.

Marinette couldn't help but stare at the pair of twins as they bickered with Haruhi. Her mind worked it's gears, until the light bulb went off. "Excuse me," The three of them stopped, looking at Marinette. "Would you two happen to be the sons of the CEO and Chief Designer of Hitachiin Fashions, Yuzuha Hitachiin?"

The twins blinked, looking up at her. "You know our mom?" asked.

Marinette gasped. "Ohmygod! I'm a _huge _fan of her work! Hikaru and Kaoru, right?" She asked.

"Oh, a fan?" One of the twins asked.

"It's not often we hear that." Said the other.

"Oh, I'm a huge fan of her work. I aspire to be a fashion designer myself, so I'm a big fan of both the Hitachiin and the Agreste brand." Marinette pulled her phone out to show them some of the things she's worked on, some loosely based off of their mother's work.

"You know what you should do?" Hikaru(?) asked, looking down at Marinette.

"You should visit the Host Club!" Kaoru(?) finished.

Marinette looked between each twin. "What's the Host Club?" she asked.

"It's something you shouldn't even bother getting caught up with. I got caught up with it and now, I'm—"

"Having a lot of fun with us!" One of the twins said, draping an arm around Haruhi.

"But you should really come by, one day. We have some days where we have themes, and showcase our mom's designs." Said the other.

Marinette bit her lip, but the way Haruhi spoke about it kind of made it seem like trouble. She glanced over at Adrien, to see if he was interested or not, but he didn't seem to be paying any attention at all.

"Well..." Marinette started, looking back at the three. "I think I should get to know the school a little better, and it's programs before I join any extracurricular activities."

Hikaru and Kaoru looked a little bummed, but the look on Haruhi's face looked relieved.

"Well, if you ever change your mind," Hikaru trailed off.

"We will be in Music Room Three." Finished Kaoru.

"Music Room Three." Marinette repeated, making a mental note while noticing how Haruhi shook her head.

The day went on, Adrien and Marinette going to their respective classes, but agreed to meeting for lunch.

Marinette looked for the blond and was nearly disappointed when she didn't find him, until she realized he was being surrounded by a group of girls.

She made her way through the crowd, managing to shoo away most of the girls. She sat across from him, giving a small huff. "Fangirls, huh?"

Adrien chuckled sheepishly. "I know they don't mean harm, but I'm not so sure as to how the keep them at bay."

Marinette was sweat dropping internally. "No worries, I'll shoo them off while I can." Said the fangirl herself.

"Thanks, Marinette." He gives her a genuine smile, and she thinks she could possibly melt.

Mentally, she was. Physically, not yet.

The rest of the day went on with no complaints. Marinette was able to understand the material well, and only required minimum help with translation.

Adrien required more help with fangirls come the end of the day, but it was nothing that Marinette couldn't handle.

Dinner was prepared and the two of them were able to dine together, and do some homework together, while only embarrassing herself ten times.

_Progress_, she thinks.

That's Day One. Three hundred and fifty five more to go.


	4. Chapter 4

Only those with excellent social standing and those from filthy rich families are lucky enough to spend their time here at the elite, private school, Ouran Academy.

The Ouran Host Club is where the school's handsomest boys with way too much time on their hands entertain young ladies who also have way too much time on their hands. Just think of it as the Ouran Academy's playground for the super rich and beautiful

"How peculiar..." Kyoya stated, closing a black, leather portfolio.

"So, you've noticed it too, then?" Tamaki asks, his hand rubbing at his chin thoughtfully.

"Naturally, I've noticed upon day one. While you were fawning over our guests, my readings were coming up short." Kyoya replies, adjusting his glasses. "Customers have been decreasing in numbers, or arriving late, ever since the arrival of the new student."

"What are we going to do, Boss?" The twins questioned in unison.

All eyes turned to the blond, who was humming thoughtfully. There was a moment of silence before he lowered his hand from his chin and took a breath.

"Well, I guess we must find out what all the fuss is about in regards to this boy, won't we?"

_Several days later_

"An invitation to the Host Club?" Adrien asks, taking an envelope from Haruhi's hands.

"Turns out, your appearance has been affecting our business," Hikaru starts.

"And the Boss wants to see what all the fuss is about." Kaoru continues.

"Which basically means, he's jealous that you've taken his spotlight." Haruhi finishes blandly.

"What's your business?" Marinette asks, looking over Adrien's shoulder to peek at the letter, before looking at the other three.

"To host!" Hikaru commented.

"Have you never been to a host club before, Marinette?" Kaoru asked.

She shakes her head. "I can't say I have." She replies, before looking up at Adrien. "Well, what do you say?"

Adrien sighed softly. "I've got a fencing meeting I've got to attend, but I could go after?"

The twins looked at each other and nodded, while Haruhi sighs softly.

While Adrien agreed to go, Marinette was completely and totally not invited. But... that didn't stop her from inviting herself.

Over the course of the past week, Marinette had become acquaintances with the Culinary Club, so she decided that if she was going to be the Uninvited Guest to the Host Club, she should at least bring a gift.

Being friends with the Culinary Club had its perks. Especially at such a school like Ouran. Access to a fully equipped kitchen and gossip. And it was no secret that Adrien had been invited to the Host Club.

Marinette was putting in an assortments of sweet breads into the oven when she overheard a conversation between other girls.

"If Adrien joins the Host Club, I would melt." Squealed one of them.

"He's so kind, and he's like..." She sighed dreamily. "A ray of sunshine."

"A natural prince." Commented another.

"But if Adrien's the natural prince, then wouldn't that dethrone Tamaki?" Questioned the first.

The other two gasped, and they began to whisper among themselves.

The more Marinette listened, the more intrigued she grew with the Host Club. Now, she _had _to go.

Once the sweet breads were done, Marinette individually wrapped them and borrowed one of the baskets and headed out.

Music Room Three.

Marinette was sitting on a bench a close distance away from the room, but she could see the girls going in and out of the room. Her curiosity kept creeping up, and she nearly considered going in without Adrien, when the boy himself startled her out of her thoughts.

"Marinette? What are you doing here?" He asks.

Marinette jumped and the sweet breads flew out of the basket. They remained in midair for a couple seconds and Marinette managed to catch them all within her basket. "A-Adrien! You scared me!" She stammered as she caught all the breads.

The last bread miraculously landed in Adrien's hands. "What's this?" He asks.

"O-Oh, it's, um, I came bearing gifts? Figured since I'm going to show up uninvited, I should bring something? I figured that, I could join you?" It was meant to be a statement, not a question.

Adrien chuckled and he tucked the sweet bread into his bag. "Well then, lets go, shall we?"

The two of them went to the door and pushed in, the doors opening on their own accord. A strange wind picked up as well, bringing rose petals fluttering to them. A light they hadn't noticed cleared, and they were warmly greeted by a group of boys.

When the light settled, Hikaru and Kaoru perked at the sight of Marinette.

"You came!" They both sang as they barely greeted Adrien to say hello to Marinette.

She chuckled shyly. "Well, you two peaked my interest, and I thought, since my ride is going to be here, I figured, why not?" She smiled. Marinette noticed a smaller, blonde boy approaching her, eyes stuck to her basket.

"What's in here?" He asked, his eyes peeking over the brim of it and at the wrapped goods.

Marinette smiled, plucking one of the wrapped pieces and handing it to him. "It's sweet bread. This one is strawberry creme."

The boy unwrapped the bread and took a bite of it, humming and cupping his jaw as he chewed. "Wow, these are like, heaven! Where did you get these from?" He asked.

"I made them myself." She replied, offering slices to each boy.

"These are pretty good, you're an amazing baker, Marinette." Haruhi states.

"Well, when you grow up in a bakery, you learn the trade." She handed a slice to the taller blond, and he smiles softly.

"And you, mademoiselle, what is your name?" He asks kindly.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng." She replies.

He takes her hand and places a soft kiss on her knuckles that made a blush explode on her face. "Well, my lovely Marinette, thank you for treating my hosts to a lovely snack."

Marinette stammered for words and the boy winked at her. Marinette was effectively paralyzed.

The boy looked to Adrien and she stood tall and —dare Marinette say — handsome. "Adrien Agreste, I formally welcome you to my Host Club." He gave an elaborate bow that caught Adrien off guard.

"Thanks," Adrien replies, shifting slightly. "I only have one question."

"And what's that?" The other replied.

"Why did you send out a formal invitation for me? Isn't the Host Club usually a thing for girls?" Adrien questions.

The boy chuckles. "Of course it is. The reason of my invitation, however, my dear Adrien, is to invite you to be _a part _of the Host Club."


	5. Chapter 5

The Ouran Host Club is where the school's handsomest boys with way too much time on their hands entertain young ladies who also have way too much time on their hands. Just think of it as Ouran Academy's playground for the super rich and beautiful.

Crickets could manifest in Music Room Three at the boy's declaration.

"I'm sorry?" Adrien asked. "You... You want _me_ to join your _host club_?"

"With your arrival to this school, business has been... lacking, per se." A male with dark hair and glasses spoke up. "Word's gone around that you've got yourselves a couple of fangirls of ours."

"And the boss is jealous." The twins chimed in.

An arrow shot through the blond's back. "Why would you call me out like that! You devilish twins!" He cried as the two stuck their tongues out at him.

"Jealous of what?" Adrien asked.

"Basically, you've been called the New Prince and stripped him of his title." Haruhi explained.

Adrien looked over at the blond, who was in a corner of the room, growing mushrooms. "And... Why... How... Um, why does that matter?" He questioned.

"Tama-chan has always been the Prince." Says the other blond.

"Tamaki is upset that he's been beaten out by someone younger and who's naturally a prince."

Every comment was an arrow to Tamaki's back.

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here!" Tamaki cried. He then turned to Adrien and he pointed a finger at him. "I challenge you to a host match off! Whoever gets the most customers in the span of one week is the true prince!"

"A week is a bit too short to determine that, don't you think?" The male with glasses commented.

"Fine! Whoever gets the most customers in the span of the rest of your stay is the true prince!"

"Don't you think this is getting too out of hand, Kyoya-senpai?" Haruhi asks.

Kyoya closes his portfolio and adjusts his glasses. "Quite the contrary, I think this would be great for business.

_Starting today, you're a host!_

Adrien was beyond confused with the sudden turn of events. He had no intentions of stirring trouble while in Japan, and now he was roped up into being part of a host club!

"I don't think you're stirring trouble." Marinette tried to comfort him. "I think it would be a _little _fun. Adds some flavor to our year here, and who knows, maybe make some new friends."

He looked at her. "I'm terrible at making friends. I've never had friends to begin with, I was always raised on my own, homeschooled. I mean, I had _one_, but she was my mom's friend's daughter, and we used to play with each other when we were younger, but..." He trailed off and shook his head. "I won't be good at the host thing, or making friends thing." Adrien concludes.

"Hey, that's not true." Marinette reaches out and touches his hand. "Whenever I was trying to check into the hotel, mumbling in french, who was the one who stepped in to help me?" She asked.

"I did." Adrien mumbled.

"And when I was baking the croissants, who decided to help me?" She questioned.

"Me." He replies. 

"See? And that's how you became my friend. You say that you're not good at this, but I think you're going to do a lot better than you expect." Marinette rubbed his hand comfortingly, before she realized what she was doing and moved her hand away. "If you be yourself, and keep doing what you're doing, I think you'll be fine." She smiles.

He looked down at her hand and he smiles softly, making Marinette melt. "Thanks, Marinette. I guess it could be fun."

Marinette nodded silently, in attempts to keep herself together.

_The next day_

The two of them were standing in front of Music Room Three again.

"Alright, I can do this." Adrien says to himself before turning to Marinette. "Thank you for joining me, Marinette."

She smiles. "It's no trouble." Especially when the club has peaked her interest too.

The two headed inside and were welcomed by the group in tropical clothing. Mostly shirtless and with floral prints. They even had palm trees, exotic animals, butterflies, the whole nine yards.

It was almost as if they weren't even in the school anymore. Was this even Music Room Three?

The two were approached by a shirtless Tamaki with a headdress, handsome, and smelling sweet like hibiscus.

"Adrien, Marinette! I'm glad you could make it!" Tamaki lifted a hand and snapped, bringing Hikaru and Kaoru to his attention. "Hikaru, Kaoru, get this man into his outfit."

The twins nodded, in identical colors themselves. "On it, boss!" They replied in unison. Each twin took hold of one of Adrien's arms and dragged him further into the room to change.

Meanwhile, Marinette was left to Tamaki's whims.

"Well Marinette, since you're here, welcome to our host club! Do you know what type of host you'd like?" Tamaki asks.

"What type of host?" Marinette questions.

"Of course! Every princess has their own liking! What's yours?" He asks.

Marinette chuckles lightly. "Uh, I don't know?"

Tamaki smiles and he takes one of her hands. "Well, let me introduce you." He takes her around the rest of the room, exploring the strange wilderness that made it hard to believe that they were still indoors.

"Mitskuni Haninozuka, or like we like to call him, Honey-senpai. He is the Boy Lolita type, his cute attitude and love of sweets make the girls big fans. Don't be fooled by his youthful looks though, he's actually a third year."

Honey-senpai was the smaller blond who had approached her basket of sweets the other day. It was hard to believe that he was older than she was, despite his small size. Still, he looked like he could pack a punch.

"Takashi!" Honey went to a taller male with a stoic expression and practically climbed him. "Mari-chan made these, taste them!" He gave the other one of the wrapped slices and smiled brightly.

"Don't eat too many, or you'll get cavities."

"Takashi Morinozuka. He's also a third year, and is cousin to Honey-senpai. Mori-senpai is the Strong Silent type and him and Honey-senpai are like a package duo. Honey-senpai is like his cute item." Tamaki explained. "The two are nearly inseparable."

"That's kind of cute." Marinette replied.

Seeing the two together, it made sense to her how they could attract a crowd.

Tamaki continued to take Marinette to another part of the room, to a table where Hikaru and Kaoru were now with two other girls.

"And then he fell off the bed because he got so scared watching the movie!" Hikaru laughed.

At that, Kaoru sniffled and put a hand to his face, hiding. "Hikaru, you promised you wouldn't tell anyone." He whines with tears building in his eyes.

Hikaru frowns gently and leans close to Kaoru, cupping his face. "I'm sorry, it's just you were so cute when you fell off the bed, I just had to share the moment. Do you forgive me?" He murmured sweetly.

Kaoru gave a small hum of approval and the girls that had been accompanying them had been all but forgotten and left squealing.

"Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin. They're the Little Devil type, but their most popular thing is the 'Forbidden Brotherly Love' package."

"That... That's interesting." Marinette could see the appeal, but that was certainly not her thing.

They continued to another part of the room, where Haruhi was just chatting with three other girls. The girls were swooning and Haruhi was barely batting an eye.

"Haruhi Fujioka, the Natural type. Her natural tendency to chat with other girls makes her seem like quite the natural."

Marinette looked over at Tamaki. "_Her_?" She asks with a raised eyebrow.

Tamaki stiffened and he shook his hands frantically. "Did I say her? I meant to say him! Him! _Anyway_," He trailed off and quickly took Marinette to another location.

The next boy was the one with the dark hair and glasses. He kinda gave Marinette the chills as she got to know him.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Daughter of bakers Tom Dupain and Sabine Cheng. Managed to get a one year scholarship by testing and is now a part of the Ouran Academy school body." He closed his portfolio and gave a small smile. "Welcome to our school, Miss Dupain-Cheng. If there's anything we can do for you, don't hesitate to ask."

"Kyoya Ootori, the Cool type, Vice President and Secretary of our Host Club. He does a lot of work to keep our club going." Tamaki says.

"No offense, but why, and how do you know all this information about me?" Marinette asks.

"It's my duty as the club Secretary to know all of our customer's backgrounds.We wouldn't want to get involved with people who could ruin our reputation.

The smile that Kyoya provided gave Marinette the creeps, but she smiled and nodded as Tamaki lead her elsewhere.

"And last but not least, there's me."

It was almost as if the lights went off and a spotlight shone down on him.

"Your one and only, the Princely type." Tamaki said. He plucked a rose from a conveniently placed vase and came to Marinette, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles gently. "If there's anything I can do for you, Princess, do let me know." He winked, placing the rose in her hand.

"Well, you _were_ the only one." Chimed in one of the twins.

Tamaki's spotlight died and it was like an arrow went right through him. "W-Why would you..."

"Say hello to our new Princely type."


	6. Chapter 6

Adrien was dressed much like Tamaki was, except in a red color scheme while Tamaki was in a purple one.

Marinette had seen many pictures and clippings of Adrien, but seeing him in the flesh was a whole other out of body experience.

"Well, what do you think?" The twins spoke in unison.

Marinette was speechless, still. Tamaki was humming shortly.

"I guess we have to try and find out." Tamaki looked down and cleared his throat, all commotion going silent as they all focused on him.

"Our new host, Adrien Agreste, is now open for business." He announced.

It was almost like a wave of girls came running at them, washing away the Hitachiin twins and Tamaki away.

Kyoya eventually had to step in and settle the crowd, getting a list of appointments started.

Adrien was set at a small table with two girls, who were drooling at the eye candy he was. And Marinette couldn't blame them.

Marinette sat at a small picnic table with the Hitachiin twins, watching from the distance. Adrien certainly was a little awkward, but he glanced over at Marinette, and she gave him an encouraging thumbs up.

Adrien smiled and he turned to the girls, who were swooning at a smile not directed at them.

"How well do you know him?" One of the twins asked, pulling Marinette's attention away.

"I mean," She glances back at him before looking back at the twins. "Not personally? I knew _of_ him, but I never knew him personally." She explains.

"His father runs one of the biggest fashion companies in France. The Agreste Line?" Kaoru asked. 

Marinette nodded. "Yes! He's quite a famous designer and Adrien is his model, I have a lot of clippings — U-Uh, I mean," She starts to laugh nervously. "Of his work! Totally not just... Not just of Adrien."

The twins look at each other before they smile mischievously.

"Sounds like someone has a crush." They sang in unison.

"What!" Squeaked Marinette as she jumped to her feet.

A hush went through the club and all eyes were on Marinette. A blush went through her and she laughed nervously, getting back into her seat.

"Gosh, Marinette," cooed Kaoru.

"Don't go letting everyone know you have a huge, massive crush on Adrien." Hikaru sang.

"Shut up!" Marinette hissed softly. "I don't have a huge, massive crush!"

The twins laughed at Marinette's minor fuming and continued to bicker.

While Adrien didn't have girls to tend to, he would watch all the other hosts. Especially Tamaki.

Tamaki was a Natural Prince. He dripped with good looks and he always seemed to know how to get the ladies to swoon.

Adrien wasn't particularly fond of his model status back at home — being drowned by fangirls and not being able to leave the household without Nathalie and the driver.

And sure, while here in Ouran, he was still... "eye candy" as they called it, the girls weren't as wild as they were at home.

Tamaki flaunted his good looks and seemed to have fun doing it.

"My princess," Tamaki appears besides Marinette, kneeling on one knee. "Shall I steal you from the dastardly twins and whisk you away? I can show you the world." Tamaki sang, winking.

Marinette effectively blushed and set her hand in Tamaki's open one.

"Hey, who are you calling 'dastardly'." Cried the twins behind Tamaki as he twirled Marinette around.

"So, what do you think of my little club, Marinette?" Tamaki asks.

Marinette tries to settle the blush on her cheeks and she smiles. "I don't think that 'small' is the correct word for it, but it's very... interesting, to say the least."

Tamaki smiles. "You're more than welcome to come, any time you like." He gave a formal bow. "And free of charge at that."

"On one condition," Kyoya spoke. "We can't just let you in for free, now can we?"

Marinette could feel the chill run through her.

"If you bring more snacks!" Honey glomped Marinette's arm, his eyes tiny stars.

"And you help us pick and design outfits." The twins spoke together.

"Well, what do you think?" Tamaki asked.

Marinette looked down at Honey, then at the rest of the club. Tamaki looked very enthusiastic, but it was Adrien's cool demeanor that really sold it for her.

Adrien was sitting against an armrest, listening to the whole interaction. He smiled softly and gave an encouraging nod.

Marinette smiled and nodded, before she looked to the rest of the host club. "Alright, sounds like a fair deal.

Days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into a month or two.

Adrien is still trying to get comfortable as a host, openly flirting with other girls, which were still in line to see him.

Marinette managed to bring a new snack daily, whether it was cookies, muffins, sponge cake, or mini bundt cakes. The club and Honey's sweet tooth were always satisfied.

Once a week, or so often, Tamaki would come up with the brilliant idea of having a theme to one of the meetings and Marinette and the twins are put to choose an outfit.

"How does he come up with these ideas anyway?" Marinette asked as they browsed through a catalogue of Hitachiin costumes.

"Do you really think they're 'brilliant ideas'?" Hikaru asks, using obvious air quotes.

"I've heard that Kyoya-senpai puts a magazine in the boss' periphery and, poof! The boss has a new idea." Kaoru whispers.

It makes Marinette think of all the themed parties they've had so far.

The first one when it was Adrien's first day. They had one in the school gardens, they had a Hawaii themed, and it made Marinette wonder.

"How does Tamaki get away with doing all these themed parties?" She asked out loud.

"What do you mean?" Kaoru asked.

"Like the tea party and the days the club has been at the gardens. And then all the decorations, like the tropical paradise. I'm eighty-five percent sure that almost all the decor was real."

"They were real." Hikaru confirms.

Marinette shivers as she recalls a snake she saw, slithering its way up a palm tree. "I mean, the school is okay with all that?" She asks.

"Why wouldn't they?" Kaoru asks.

Marinette's eyebrows furrow. "Well, I mean... to get all those _authentic_ decorations, and to use the school's _pristine_ gardens for a host tea party, I mean..." She trailed off, hoping that the boys would get the gist of her thoughts.

"It seems to me," Kyoya started, startling Marinette in her chair. "You don't know exactly who Tamaki is." He was scribbling words into his portfolio, standing over her.

Marinette sighed softly and looked up at him, looked at the twins and back at Kyoya. "I guess not?"

"The boss is the President's son." The twins replied.

"The President?" Marinette exclaimed.

"Of Ouran." Kyoya added. "He is the son of Yuzuru Suoh, Tamaki Suoh."

Marinette looked over at Tamaki, who was sitting on a cough with girls at his sides. "Tamaki Suoh."

When she put the two of them side by side, they looked nothing alike. But still, you won't look exactly like one parent and adoption can still be a thing. It made her wonder about his mother.

"What about Tamaki's mom?" She asked, but the sudden, sharp closing of Kyoya's portfolio made her jump.

"Would you look at the time? It's time to close for today. If you would excuse me." Kyoya gave that cold smile before heading off to go see Tamaki.

The twins watched Kyoya leave before they turned to Marinette.

"Not much is known about the boss' mom."

"All we know is that it's a touchy subject to discuss."

Marinette slowly nodded, her eyes wandering back to Tamaki, who was pouting puppy eyes at Kyoya, who was completely immune to them.

Everyone had their own family affairs. She knew that Adrien's mom was out of the picture, one of her classmates at home, Chloé, her mom left at a young age.

She was blessed to have both of her parents, but she wished nothing but the best for those who had lost a parent. Nothing can replace a missing parent.

"Marinette!" She turned to the call of her name, seeing Adrien waving her over.

Friends can become something like family, right?

"Let's go home!"

"Don't let your big, huge crush on Adrien distract you." Hikaru teased.

"Oh, shut up." Marinette hissed quietly. She stood and grabbed her school bag, heading over to Adrien. "Let's go." She smiled.

_Wishful thinking, Marinette._


	7. Chapter 7

Two months had passed. Or maybe three? Either way, time was flying by, being involved with the Host Club.

In the two or three months that have passed by, there had been several themed parties, new and familiar faces and a lot of plot dumping.

"Marinette!" A brunette went bounding up and nearly tackled Marinette to the ground at the downstairs lobby of the hotel.

"Alya!" She laughed as she caught her, before giving her a squeezing hug. "Oh my god, I've missed you so much."

The lobby was full of the two girls talking in excited french until they went upstairs.

"I've missed you so much, the last three months have been so lonely without you." Alya says, as the two of them are walking to Marinette's room, their arms linked together.

"It's hard to believe that it's been three months. I feel like I just got here yesterday." Marinette laughs.

The two make it to the hotel room, and Alya starts to look around for Adrien.

"So," she starts, taking Marinette to the small living area they had. "What's the scoop, living with Adrien Agreste, huh?" She questioned, wagging an eyebrow.

"Alya!" Marinette shushed her and leaned closer, even though she knew Adrien was taking a shower in his room. "It's... It's like a wild dream come true."

Alya coos and teases Marinette loudly, before Marinette shushes her again, a blush exploding on her cheeks.

"So, you now how Chloé always brags how her and Adrien are 'best childhood friends', and whatnot? She caught wind of him being the other student who won the scholarship, and she's like, so mad." She snorted.

Marinette rolls her eyes. "'Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous'. Seriously, what's with that girl."

Alya laughs. "She was like, 'Ugh! I can't believe that that Dupain-Cheng is at Japan with my Adrikins'." Alya mocked.

Marinette laughs. "I mean, we're only sharing the same living space for a year." She rolled her eyes and hair flipped before the two of them burst into a fit of giggles.

Tom and Sabine also came by to visit. Marinette was so happy to see them, her dad was nearly in tears.

"Oh, my daughter! My sweet, sweet daughter!" The large man picked her up and spun her around. "Oh, how the bakery has lost its life once you left, my little bluebell!" Tom cried.

Marinette laughed as her father spun her, almost at tears herself. "Oh, papa. I've missed you too."

"Don't listen to Tom, Marinette, you know how he loves to exaggerate. The shop has been as busy as always, but he's not wrong."

Tom sets Marinette down and Marinette looks to her mother as she wipes away at her watery eyes.

"It's not the same without you."

Marinette gave a soft smile and she hugged her mom, a group hug being initiated when Tom wrapped his arms around the two of them.

While catching up with her parents, Adrien came out of his room, prompting a Parental Freak Out by Tom.

"A boy!" He exclaimed. "Marinette, you were hiding a boy in your room!"

"Papa!"

"N-No, sir! It, It's not what you think!" Adrien stammered.

"This is Adrien Agreste, my roommate and the other scholarship student." Marinette quickly explained.

"Adrien Agreste?" Sabine piped up. "Is he the young man that you have posted all over your roo—"

"Anyone thirsty!" Marinette interrupted, followed by a nervous laugh. "I'll go get us some drinks." She said, before rushing to the kitchen.

"Sit down, son." Tom motioned for Adrien to sit down, and he eyed the blond up and down while Marinette came back with glasses of lemonade for everyone.

Marinette sat besides Adrien, with some room between them, sipping on a glass of lemonade to cool the blush on her skin.

"So, what are your intentions with my daughter?" Tom questioned.

Marinette sputtered into her cup as she nearly inhaled her lemonade. "Papa!" She exclaimed between coughs.

"My intentions with your daughter?" Adrien questioned. "I intend to treat her with the respect and admiration that she deserves."

"Anything else besides that?" Tom asks, crossing his arms against his chest."

"None, sir." Adrien replies.

Tom looks him up and down again, before giving a hum and a nod. "Very well. You treat my daughter well, you hear?"

Adrien nods. "Of course, sir."

"Oh, come now, Tom, it's not like they're dating or getting married." Sabine said, patting his arm lightly.

"Well, I know, but it's still a boy." Tom whines lightly.

While the two continued to talk, Marinette leaned over towards Adrien. "I'm... _so_ sorry." She whispers.

Adrien glanced over at her and picked up his glass, smiling into his cup. "No worries, it's quite entertaining." He whispered back before taking a sip of his lemonade.

The next visitor was quite unexpected but a nice surprise.

"Nathalie!"

The woman smiled softly and opened her arms out for an embrace. "The estate has been quite lonely without you." She says as she gives him a gentle squeeze.

"Is it bad that I don't miss it?" Adrien asks.

Nathalie hums thoughtfully before smiling and shaking her head. "Not at all."

Adrien introduces Nathalie to Marinette, explaining that she's kind of like his caretaker, since his father isn't around much.

"Speaking of your father," she reached into her back and pulled out a tablet. "He would like to speak with you."

Marinette was buzzing at the fact that Adrien was going to speak to his father, the One, the Only, Gabriel Agreste, but it didn't seem like Adrien was so psyched to talk to his own father.

The tablet jingled as they waited for Gabriel to answer. Adrien tapped on his knees nervously as he waited. The facetime call made the familiar trill as it connected, and Adrien could see his father, who clearly wasn't looking at the screen.

"Nathalie, what is it?" He asks.

"Hello, Father."

Adrien's voice brought Gabriel's attention to the screen. "Oh, Adrien. How is school going?"

Marinette was present in the room while the call took place, but obviously, out of the frame. It was strange how... cold? Distant? Gabriel seemed to be with his own son.

"Have you made any new acquaintances?" Gabriel questions.

"I made friends with the sons of the CEO of Hitachiin Fashions." Adrien replies.

"Yes, Yuzuha Hitachiin. It's best to keep those boys in your favor, it might lead to a partnership in a later project." Gabriel looks away, gathering some things around his desk. "Speaking of projects, it's time you get back into modeling."

Adrien looked up at Nathalie and Marinette could see the sadness in Adrien's eyes.

If Adrien managed to sit through Marinette's parents' shenanigans, then she could certainly sit through Adrien's father's.

"Excuse me, Mr. Agreste?" Marinette came to sit beside Adrien, in frame of the call. "Nice to meet you, I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien's roommate."

The new female voice brought Gabriel's attention back to the screen and he was nearly scowling. "And to what do I owe to be speaking with you, Miss Dupain-Cheng?"

"I couldn't help but overhear that you mentioned to Adrien that you want him to start modeling again. Now, I'm all for Adrien going back to modeling, he's a great model, but, the Ouran Academy Handbook states that it's against the school rules to have a job while attending the Academy. So, unless you want Adrien to get expelled and lose a change with Yuzuha Hitachiin, I would suggest that Adrien remains focused on school and the club."

"Club? What club?" Gabriel questioned.

The two of them stiffened.

_Oops. Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that. _Marinette sweatdropped internally.

"Well," she started as she gathered her thoughts. "It's a social club. Adrien and I are a part of it and we make connections with different parts of the school body. Recently, Adrien is making good connections with the Hitachiin twins and also a couple of the other families' children. If anything, the club seems to be a great way to make new connections and possibly, future partnerships.

Gabriel remained silent for a moment, before he nodded. "That's a good idea. Make as many connections as you can, Adriein. We can push all projects until you come back home. Nathalie?"

She turned the tablet to face her. "Yes, sir?"

As she talked to Gabriel, both Marinette and Adrien sighed softly and deflated against the couch.

"Thanks for saving me, Marinette." Adrien said.

"I could tell how much you didn't want to go back to that. Besides," she nudged him gently. "You have a challenge to win." She winked.

Adrien chuckled. "A social club, huh?" He shook his head.

"Am I wrong?" Marinette smiled.

He shook his head. "No, no, you're just.. You saved my skin. Thank you." He nudged her back.

Marinette giggles softly and a small blush dusts her cheeks. "If you can sit through my parents, the least I can do is sit through yours."

Nathalie finished the call with Gabriel and put the tablet back into her bag. "Well, it seems like Marinette is your saviour in disguise." She smiled at her. "Take care of thim, while the two of you are together, yes?"

Marinette nods. "Yes, ma'am."

She smiles and looks at Adrien. "And behave. Understood?"

Adrien blushes a bit, but nods. "Yes, Nathalie."

_A couple days later_

"So it was like a whole family reunion." Tamaki asks.

"Must have been interesting." Haruhi added. "I hope my dad doesn't decide to stop by at any given moment." They mumble.

"A family reunion..." A voice echoes out around the room. "A touching reunion between the children doing a foreign exchange program and the french parents... So touching."

"Where is that voice coming from?" Marinette asks, looking around.

The floor starts to shake, and there's some mechanical whirring as a platform starts to rise from the middle of Music Room Three. Laughter fills the room as a girl is standing on the top of this platform as it extended up to its full height.

"How the _hell_ did she do that?" Marinette asks, holding onto Haruhi's arm.

"Honestly, I've just learned not to ask any questions and just roll with the punches." Haruhi explains.

"Hey, uh, sorry, but who are you?" Adrien asks.

"I'm Renge Houshakugi, the Host Club manager."


	8. Chapter 8

_Previously on, The Princely Type_

"I'm Renge Houshakugi, the Host Club manager."

Adrien and Marinette stared at her, while everyone seemed naturally unbothered by the strange girl and this strange platform that seemingly came from nowhere.

"Since when does the club have a manager?" Marinette asks.

The twins shrugged. "We don't."

"She's self-proclaimed." Kyoya spoke up, holding a hand out to Renge so she could step down from the platform.

What as more interesting was that Renge nearly tossed herself at Kyoya with a childish giggle. Kyoya seemed unbothered by her cooing.

"Renge, I'd like you to meet one of our new hosts and... his roommate. Adrien Agreste and Marinette Dupain-Cheng." Kyoya introduced Renge to the two and she kept looking at Marinette.

"Dupain-Cheng?" Renge tilted her head to the side. "Dupain-Cheng, like Tom and Sabine's bakery, Dupain-Cheng?"

"That's my parents' bakery!" Marinette brightened.

"I love that bakery!" Renge smiled.

"I'm glad to hear it, but how do you know about us form all the way over here." Marinette questions.

"Renge used to live in France. She moved here, confusing Kyoya with a dating simulation game character." Tamaki explains.

"Kyoya-senpai isn't really that charming." Hikaru teased.

"He's more intimidating than charming." Kaoru added.

"Kyoya-senpai has his tender sides, shut up!" Renge's hair turned into snakes as she hissed at the twins.

The twins slinked away and Renge turned to the new host. "But an Agreste as the new host? Does your father know about this?" She asks, walking around Adrien.

Adrien swallowed thickly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, no... not exactly." He chuckled nervously.

"Sorry, but aren't club activities starting soon?" Marinette interrupted before Renge could ask any further questions.

"Oh, she's right!" Tamaki perked up. He pulled out a big box that was out of frame and set it down in the middle of the room.

"Today's theme is," he opened the box as the rest of the hosts gathered around him.

"Cat café!" Marinette sang as Tamaki started to pull out cat ears.

"And Haruhi," Tamaki cooed. "I got you a dress! A whole kitty girl outfit that you could wear! Imagine how cute you'd be!" Tamaki held up a pink, frilly maid-styled dress that donned cat ears and a bell.

"I am not wearing that." Haruhi turned away.

"But Haruhi," Tamaki whined. "You'd look so cute in it. Maybe with Renge and Marinette around, you can finally touch on your feminine roots!"

As they continued to bicker, Marinette was watching them as everyone else picked up their costume.

"What's up, Marinette?" The twins ask.

"Why is it that Tamaki is so insistent on having Haruhi dress up as a girl?" She questioned.

"Because Haruhi _is _a girl." Adrien spoke up.

The twins, Marinette, basically the whole entire host club turned to Adrien.

"Haruhi's a what?" Marinette asked.

"Don't tell anyone our secret, Adrien." Tamaki begged, clutching Haruhi's dress to his chest.

"My gender isn't a secret. I just don't think it's important to know my gender, and more about how I identify. I'm just comfortable being me." Haruhi huffed, smacking the dress that Tamaki was holding out of his hands.

The dress crumpled to the ground and Tamaki pouted, looking over at Kyoya. "Daddy." He whined.

"Yes, Mommy?"

"Haruhi is being meaaaaaaan." Tamaki whines.

"Well," Adrien puts on some black kitty ears, sporting a bell around his neck and a pair of paw gloves. "Guess the _cat's_ out of the bag, huh?" He asked, nudging Marinette playfully.

"Oh god, we said 'cat café', not cat puns." She rolls her eyes.

"Me-_ouch_. What's with the cold shoulder, Princess?" He continues.

"Adrien," She laughs. "You sound so lame with your cat puns."

"You're just mad because my jokes are _purr_fect." Adrien sticks his tongue out at her and she shakes her head with a smile.

"Oh, _sure_, go away, kitty." She pushes him away playfully and she goes to Tamaki, taking Haruhi's dress. "How about I spare Haruhi the dress and wear it myself?"

Haruhi shot Marinette a grateful look and she smiles.

The girls would squeal, seeing all the boys with oversized bells hanging from their necks, with kitty ears and almost live-like tails, the girls were losing their hearts.

It was interesting though, the new development that came with Cat Adrien. He was more suave, more relaxed, more... flirty.

Marinette thought it was entertaining, only being mildly annoyed with the cat puns. This Adrien seemed to be a lot more laid back and carefree. And honestly? She liked it.

Marinette has only spent a couple months with Adrien, but she's seen the effect that his father has on him. Not only that, but she's began to think that this was his first time ever really going out of the Agreste Estate, the first time he was allowed to be himself, carefree and not under direct supervision of his father or Nathalie, even though she was more of a caretaker.

"Do you know him very well?"

Renge startled Marinette out of her thoughts. "I, uh, who? Adrien?"

Renge nods. "Yeah, the only host you've been eyeing." She teases lightly.

Marinette blushes lightly, but shakes her head. "I've only personally known him for the small amount of time that we've been roommates." She replies.

"Who knew that a famous child model could be like... _that_."

Marinette hums. "It's not pity that I feel, but... It's like... an anger? I wonder what's happened in his life that's made him so... So sheltered. So kind."

"Well, why don't you ask?" Renge questioned.

"You can't just ask someone why they're the way the are, Renge." Marinette sputtered.

"Well, why not?" She asks. "Hey, Adrien!" Renge calls, grabbing Adrien's attention.

"Renge, no, stop." Marinette shushed Renge, but she couldn't be stopped as bounded over to him.

"You know, I was wondering. As the son of a famous french fashion designer and a popular fashion model as yourself, what makes you, you?" Renge asks, pulling out a notepad and pen, some glasses sitting low on the bridge of her nose.

Adrien looked up at Renge, then at Marinette, who was wearing an apologetic look behind her. "Uh, what do you mean?" He asks.

"Like, what was life like at home? What lead to you become this sweet person?" She asks, holding her pen like a microphone to Adrien.

Adrien sat back in his chair, removing his cat gloves. "Well, I was born to two loving parents, they met in fashion school actually. They entered the fashion industry together and got married shortly after graduating. And then I came along, and maybe one to two years later, my father hit big and he was able to start his own fashion line."

He took off the cat ears and ran a hand through his hair. "Things after that got weird, I guess. My father seemed to be consumed with his work and, even though we all lived in the same house, my mama and I saw less and less of my father. Things started to get rough between my parents. One night, I caught them arguing."

_"You have a son, Gabriel. He's spent the better part of his childhood without his father."_

_"Emilie, business is blooming right now, and I have deadlines to meet--"_

_"You care more about your job and career more than us!"_

_"I'm trying to make a future for all of us!"_

_"A future that's only for you, Gabriel! We are barely a part of this!"_

Adrien took in a deep breath and sighed softly. "Maybe around two or three years later, my mom disappeared. We don't know where she went, and I was left to my father's whims. I was always homeschooled and since I didn't have much else to do, my father roped me into becoming his model. I wasn't a big fan, in fact, I hate it. But there isn't much I can do against my father. Now, I barely see him. It's usually just me, his assistant, Nathalie, and the driver. And this is kind of my first time out in the real world. I never realized what I was missing out on."

Adrien looked up and noticed a lot of watery eyes, sobs coming from Tamaki, Marinette, Renge and the twins. Marinette and Tamaki went to hug him, the two piled up on him.

"I'm s-so sorry, Adrien. You deserve better." Marinette sniffled into his shoulder.

He chuckled lightly, pressing a soft kiss onto her hair. "Aw, c'mon Princess, no need to cry. You've been the first and best friend I could have ever asked for." Adrien murmured lightly.

"I promise! We will be your new family!" Tamaki looked up to the rest of the host club. "Right, guys?"

The twins and Honey gave nods, jumping into the group hug, other girls nodding as well.

"I know what it's like to lose an important member of your family. So, while we may not be blood related," Tamaki puts a hand on Adrien's shoulder. "I've always got your back."

Adrien chuckled lightly. "Thanks, Tamaki."

And as everyone took their turn hugging Adrien, Kyoya was in the distance, writing into his portfolio.

"That's an interesting notion..."


	9. Chapter 9

"The beach? Is the club going on vacation, or something?" Marinette asks.

"Not necessarily." Hikaru explained.

"We still need to work, unfortunately." Kaoru continued.

"The Host Club is still in business, it's just the beach episode." Adrien finished.

Marinette blinked. "Well, wow. You've really got in sync with the twins."

The blond looked over at the twins and they all looked at each other before they collectively turned to Marinette and shrugged.

"It's summertime, plus we have a beach house in Okinawa that we can use to spend the night." Tamaki suggested.

"Freaking rich people." Haruhi mumbled.

"I think it would be fun! I want to collect sea shells!" Honey cheered.

"The beach is a private one, so only those with allowed access are permitted to enter. Since it will be in Okinawa, we may have to raise prices." Kyoya states, nose deep into his portfolio.

"Prices?" Marinette wonders out loud.

"Of course." Kyoya closes his portfolio. "Can't keep the Host Club running without a good influx of money."

The smile that Kyoya gave sent a familiar wave of frost through Marinette, making her slink against the twins.

"Is he always this creepy?" Marinette whispers.

"You'd think he would play the cool and silent type,"

"But he's more of a Shadow King." Hikaru finished.

Marinette nods slowly, watching Kyoya as he talks to Tamaki before walking off. "That... Makes sense." She murmurs.

"Are you going to come?" Adrien asks, going around the twins to look at her.

"Go where?"

"The beach!"

"Uh, probably not? I'm pretty sure I'd have to pay like a customer since I'm not an official host." Marinette shrugs.

"Aw, c'mon, Mari," Hikaru whined.

"Come with us." Kaoru wrapped his arms around one of hers, while Hikaru attached himself to the other.

"It will be more fun if you do." Adrien joined, going behind her and flipping her pigtails.

Marinette stammered for words, overwhelmed at the three boys' attention.

Honey was walking by when he noticed the commotion and he decided to join in on the fun, latching onto Marinette's side. "Yeah, Mari-chan, join us!" He cooed. "Wait, what are we trying to convince her to join?"

Adrien stopped flipping her pigtails for a second to answer his question. "Convincing her to come to the beach with us." He replied, before continuing.

"Oh." He looked to Tamaki. "Tama-chan, Mari-chan says she wants to come with us!."

"Honey-senpai!" Marinette exclaimed, a small blush possessing her features.

"Why not? The more the merrier!" Tamaki smiled.

"Yay!" Honey cheered. As Haruhi was walking by, he latched onto them next. "I wanna room with Haru-chan."

"What? No!" Tamaki explained, now trying to pry Honey off of Haruhi. "Haruhi is only allowed to room with daddy! She's not allowed to stay with other boys!" Tamaki hissed and tried to play father figure, but Haruhi wasn't having it.

"I don't want to go to your beach house anyways." Haruhi huffed, ignoring Tamaki's puppy eyes.

"It's very unfortunate that you won't be attending. Your debt could be significantly cut if you did." Kyoya spoke from across the room and Marinette could see the chill go through Haruhi.

"Poor Haruhi... What do they owe?" Marinette asked the twins, who had finally let go of her arms.

"She broke a vase when she first got here." Kaoru started.

"Funnily enough, no one knew she was a girl, and we all thought that she was our first male customer." Hikaru added.

"In the midst of trying to escape the Boss, she knocked over this super expensive vase we were planning on auctioning. So now, she has to make up for that vase by working." Kaoru finished.

As the replay finished, Marinette cringed lightly. "Ouch, I wish I could help Haruhi out."

"You wanna help me out?" An arm grabbed at Marinette's wrist. She looked down and noticed Haruhi prying themselves out of Tamaki's grasp. "Please say you want to room with me." They whispered.

"How about," Marinette starting, helping Haruhi stand. "I room with Haruhi?"

"But I wanted to room with Haruhi." Tamaki whines from the floor.

"Think of it this way," Adrien helps Tamaki up now. "If Haruhi spends time with Marinette, maybe those feminine roots will begin to show."

Tamaki was still pouting, but an image of Marinette and Haruhi, hanging out together and doing girly stuff warmed his heart.

"You know what, Adrien? I think you're right." Tamaki nodded, patting him on the shoulder.

Haruhi let out a silent sigh, thanking Marinette, for both helping her up and saving her skin.

Marinette nodded before she looked over at Adrien. He winked over at the two of them while Tamaki continued to fantasize about girly best friends Marinette and Haruhi.

Marinette watched the two of them, smiling softly.

It was nice to see Adrien so comfy with everyone else. Chatting with Honey, the twins. He even joins in on teasing Tamaki sometimes. It's nice, it's almost as if he had always been here.

And looking at the two blonds, they almost --

"Marinette?"

The girl snapped out of her thoughts and looked over at Honey, who was now standing beside her.

"Sorry." She laughed softly.

"It's okay! I was just wondering if you were going to bring some snacks for the road?"

Marinette smiled. "I wasn't, but if you have any requests in mind, I might be able to whip something up and sneak you something past Mori-senpai."

His eyes sparkled and he made his requests.

Soon after, Marinette and Adrien were on their way home to pack, Marinette's previous thoughts all but forgotten for now.

_One packing and travel montage later..._

"The weather is beautiful!" Marinette held onto her sunhat as the ocean breeze blew through her hair, the sun reflecting off her sunglasses.

The sounds of the waves crashing against the shore, the laugh of the gulls in the air, the smell of salt that welcomed them kindly, everything was perfect.

The boys were all in swim trunks, Marinette in a red and black ruffled bathing suit. Haruhi had to suffer through Tamaki trying to get the twins to get her into some cutesy bathing suit, but Marinette was able to bonk some sense into them.

The Host Club was in business, enjoying their fun in the sun.

"Haruhi! Why aren't you wearing a bathing suit like the other boys?"

Haruhi was stationed at some lounge chairs with their usual customers, sitting under the shade with a pullover and some swimming trunks. Marinette was sitting a couple chairs away, pretending not to listen.

"Are you scared of the ocean?" One of them asked.

"Not at all! I just burn really easily, and I don't want to risk that." Haruhi liked, tugging on the sleeves of the sweater.

Marinette contained her laugh and watched over everyone. The twins were sensually??? Lathering themselves in sunscreen, while Honey and Mori were playing a game of volleyball. Tamaki was walking on the shore with one of the girls and Adrien was building a sand castle with a couple others.

Everyone looked like they were having fun and that's all that matters.

Marinette eventually joined in on the fun, playing a game of volleyball, ending with walking along the shore and collecting seashells.

After a while, she wandered the beach, walking from one end to the other, enjoying the sound of the gulls and the crash of the waves. Eventually, she made it to the cliffs, admiring the view, when she heard voices.

"Hey, pretty lady."

"How'd you like to get a tour of the beach with one of us?"

Marinette didn't recognize the voices, especially because they were male. She went further up the cliff to investigate, when she noticed some of Haruhi's girls being cornered by some boys.

"Hey!"

The two boys looked at her as she called out to them. "Oh, you've brought a cute friend."

"Do you guys have permission to be here?" Marinette asked. "This is a private beach."

The two boys looked at each other before they started laughing.

"'This is a private beach'!" They mocked.

"I have permission to hit on some babes." One replied.

"Don't be upset because you weren't invited." Said the other.

"Why don't you come over here and join our little party, huh?"

"It should be the two of you leaving, since you weren't invited." Haruhi came up beside Marinette.

"Haruhi! What are you doing?" Marinette questions.

Before Haruhi could answer, the boys scoffed.

"Come to fetch your little girlfriend?" One grumbled.

"Why be with a wimp like that and come with us."

Marinette glared at them. "How about you fuck off."

"You two better leave before we call the police." Haruhi followed.

"Ohoho, you've got quite the mouth for a cute one."

"Don't act so tough, pipsqueak. You don't scare us."

Marinette wasn't one to pick fights, but she wasn't going to stand around and let the bad guys do their bad things. She edged closer before quickly maneuvering around the boys, and getting to the girls, asking them if they were okay.

Haruhi got closer and the boys blocked their path. Marinette got and and she pushed one of them, ushering the girls to run with the distraction provided.

"Tch, you let the girls go."

"Don't you think we ought to teach these kids a lesson." One of the boys grabbed Haruhi by the wrist and yanked them over, pushing them to Marinette. Marinette stumbled backwards as she caught Haruhi.

"Haruhi! Are you okay?"

Haruhi collected their footing and straightened. "I'm fine."

"You won't be fine when we're through with you."

Waves crashed on the cliff face below as the boys closed in on Marinette and Haruhi. The two were slowly being pushed to the edge of the cliff. The boys seemed to be big enough to hold them two of them off, too.

Marinette's heels slipped off the end and she tightened her grip on Haruhi with a gasp. "Haruhi..." She whispered nervously.

Did they really bite off more than they could chew?"

"Haruhi!"

"Marinette!"

Two new voices came into the mix, a pair of hands pushed violently against Haruhi, pushing them against Marinette, sending them over the edge.

Everything felt like it was in slow motion. The sensation of falling. The sound of the waves growing louder. The harsh sting of the water on Marinette's back. The sensation of being engulfed by the cold water. Numbness overall.

They didn't know how long it lasted before the two of them were pulled out of the water.

Marinette sputtered for air, clinging onto the arms that pulled her to safety As she cleared her eyes, she was welcomed by Adrien's worried expression.

"Marinette! Are you okay?" He asked, his eyes scanning her for any injury.

"I... I think so. Wait!" Marinette looked behind Adrien. "Haruhi, where's Haruhi?" She asked, panic lacing her tone.

Adrien shushed her gently and motioned ahead. "Don't worry, Tamaki's got her."

Marinette looked over and saw Tamaki setting them down. She sighed in relief. "Thank goodness."

Adrien helped Marinette down, but as soon as she put pressure on her right ankle, she winced sharply. "You're hurt." He wrapped an arm around her waist. "Guys, Marinette's hurt!"


	10. Chapter 10

"It's only a bruised ankle, so she will be fine." Kyoya states as he finished wrapping up Marinette's ankle.

They had all returned to the beach house, Adrien hovering over Marinette while Tamaki did Haruhi. The two trespassers were gone before they could be apprehended by Kyoya's police force, but they were on the lookout for them.

"We're sorry we got you two wet." Marinette apologized.

"Why are you apologizing, you're the one who got hurt. We should be the ones apologizing." Adrien replied.

"Besides, people say that we're dripping with good looks." Tamaki puts an arm around Adrien's shoulder and he winks.

Marinette rolls her eyes, but she smiles lightly, once again noticing how close the two were. Both tall and lanky, handsome, blond...

"You know," Marinette started, getting the boys' attention again. "It's weird, or maybe I hit my head or something, but you two... Kinda look alike."

The two of them looked at each other before looking at Marinette.

"I mean, beside the eye color and Tamaki being Japanese, I think we could pass as brothers." Adrien shrugged.

"Actually, I'm half-Japanese." Tamaki says. "I"m also half-French."

"What?" Both Marinette and Adrien question in unison.

"You're French?" Marinette questions.

"Half, yes." Tamaki replies in French.

"Wow, that's so cool!" Marinette replies back in her native tongue.

"Are you fluent?" Adrien asks.

Tamaki nods. "My mother is French. I get most of my looks from her."

"Well, she must have been beautiful." Marinette teases lightly.

"Well," Tamaki chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. "I never really knew my mom. I don't know much about her, much less how she looks like, if I'm being honest."

"Oh no, I'm sorry. Did she..." Marinette's voice trailed off, assuming the worst.

"She's very much alive." Tamaki replied back in Japanese. "However, she left me and my father when I was young. I don't know about her whereabouts, but I know she's still out here." He says, the hope and sadness in his voice audibly palpable.

There was a small silence as the information was processed by everyone in the room. To most, this was vaguely common knowledge. This was news to Marinette and Adrien.

And Adrien could really relate.

"What a small world." He says after a while, breaking the silence. "My mom left me too."

Tamaki gave a small snort. "Now you could really say were brothers."

"Well, if you did, you wouldn't be exactly wrong."

They all grew silent and turned to Kyoya, who was sitting on a sofa chair, his portfolio open on one of the armrests as he adjusts his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"'Half-brothers' would be the correct term to use."

_Commercial break_

We interrupt this program with a very important announcement!

Get off your ass and drink some water!

Stretch!

Look at the sun! (Actually edit, don't look at it, but at least sit in it for like 3 minutes;; )

Go for a walk!

Kill a person! Eat the rich!

Pet a dog! (Unless it's a service dog!)

Treat yourself 2k19!

Feed Adrien 2k19!

But most importantly, don't forget that you are special and you can be who you want and love whoever you want!

_Now back to your scheduled program_

"_What_?" Everyone minus Kyoya and Mori exclaimed.

"Now known as Emilie Agrest, she is both Tamaki and Adrien's biological mother." Kyoya replied. 

"But Kyoya, how do you know that for sure?" Tamaki asks.

"I have the means to track certain family history down. It seems that when I put your and Adrien's history together, there seemed to be some similarities."

"So then, you now where she is? Where my mom is?" Adrien questioned.

"Unfortunately, I don't have that information yet. Madame Emilie seems to be a hard person to locate, I just need more time."

"If you need more time," Marinette pushed herself up and hopped over to him. "What /do/ you have?"

"Emilie moved to Japan with her family in her late tens. She used to work with the Suoh family, where she met your father, Tamaki. Shortly after you were born, Emilie disappeared due to unknown circumstances. Not long after that, she enrolled into fashion, where she met your father Adrien." Kyoya explained.

"And I was born after my parents got married." Adrien added.

"So then that really means we're related." Tamaki concluded.

"And that also means that Marinette didn't hit her head." Hikaru teased.

"Shut up." She muttered, elbowing him in the rib.

There was a small silence as they all sat in their thoughts.

"No offense but," Adrien started, grabbing everyone's attention. "Our mom sucks."

Tamaki didn't like to think bad about his mother, but he couldn't really argue with him.

"You're right, she does." He chuckled, pulling Adrien in for a hug.

Adrien was surprised at first, but he smiled and hugged Tamaki back.

"So, I guess when you said that you'd be his new family, you weren't kidding, huh?" Marinette cooed.

Adrien chuckled softly, pulling away. "Yeah, you're right."

Marinette smiled, seeing the looks on the boys' faces. Both of them seemed to have been fairly alone for a majority of their lives, and it was unfortunate that _this_ is what brought them together.

Still, it was nice to know that they had each other now. Well, along with the support of the host club.

After a delicious dinner and a warm bath, Marinette was struggling to wrap her ankle back the way Kyoya had it. Sure, she could wrap cloth around a mannequin, but the mighty religious figure up above forbid they let Marinette medically wrap her ankle.

She had already given up when there was a knock on her bedroom door. She would've gotten up to open the door, but at this point, she was too frustrated to do anything.

She leaned her head back in her chair. "Come in," She called, setting her foot on the bed as she looked up to the ceiling in defeat.

The door opened and someone came closer. Marinette's head lolled to the windows, taking in the expanse of sky as it twinkled outside, assuming it was Haruhi.

"How's the ankle?"

Marinette snapped to sit up, nearly giving herself whiplash. "Adrien! I, uh, w-what, um, what are you doing here?" She asks.

He smiles, coming closer and sits beside her foot on the bed. "How's it holding up?" He asks, looking down at it.

"It hurts." Marinette sighed softly. "And I can't manage to bandage it back up again." She threw the bandage on the bed to signify her giving up.

"Would you like me to help?" He asks, picking up the bandage.

Marinette flushed lightly. "I-I, you don't have to."

Adrien smiled, straightening the bandage out. "I know I don't _have_ to, but I'd _like_ to." He scoots closer, patting his leg lightly.

Marinette stammered, but she lifts her foot and puts her ankle on his leg nonetheless.

Adrien looked down at her ankle, frowning at how bruised and swollen it had become in the small amount of time that had passed. "Does it hurt a lot?" He asks quietly, as he begins to carefully wrap it.

Marinette worries her bottom lip lightly, anticipating pain, but not getting any yet. "It... Aches. But if I don't put any pressure on it, it's not too bad."

Adrien hummed quietly. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. We should have been there."

Marinette gave a short exhale. "Don't take the blame. I wasn't going to let those girls get harassed. Hurting myself to protect those girls was worth it."

Adrien shakes his head, a small smile on his features. "You're a real heroine, Mari."

She giggles quietly, flushing pink at the nickname. "I'm not all that."

He snorts. "Don't sell yourself short." He says, finishing her ankle. "You're a great bakery, designer, _and_ friend." He smiles.

"Oh, stop." Marinette mumbles, avoiding his gaze as she feels her blush burn brighter.

"Dare I say," Adrien paused, leaning forward to catch her gaze. "_Paw_some?" He finished with a little smirk.

Marinette rolled her eyes and she pushed him away by the nose. "Okay, settle down, kitty." She replied, the two of them smiling.

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, Marinette looking out the window again while Adrien messed with a stray strand from Marinette's bandage.

"When you signed up for this program," Marinette started, not looking away from the window. "Did you everything think that.. _all this_ was going to happen?" She tore her eyes from the view and looked over at Adrien.

Adrien met her gaze and held it for a while, nearly getting lost in the curiosity of her bluebell eyes. "No." He breathed out, looking out to the windows. "Honestly, I thought it was going to be like, a simple getaway? A simple getaway form a caged lifestyle and..." His voice trailed off and he took in a deep breath.

"Now look at you." Marinette said. "From a caged bird, to a Host Club Prince, you've got new friends, and on top of that, you have a half-brother now."

Adrien chuckled, incredulous. "That's the wildest part, to say the least."

Marinette tilted her head to the side and she couldn't determine the look on his face. She smiled softly and she brought her ankle down, leaning forward and resting a hand over his. "But, I hope that everything is going for the best?"

He looked down at her hand and then up at her, smiling fondly. "Of course." He took her hand gently, bringing it up to his lips. "Besides everything, you've been the best thing I've stumbled upon, Princess." He murmurs, pressing a light kiss on top of her knuckles.

Another blush grew over Marinette, overpowering her heart. "You flirt." She, although much against her own wishes, moves her hand away, but he helps her up as she tries to stand and sit on the bed. "Do you tell all your customers that?"

He huffs lightly but smiles. "Not at all. You're my one and only." He winks before he leans in closer and presses a gentle kiss on her cheek.

Marinette had to fight the urge to squawk, to scream, to melt, or straight up die.

Relishing the silence that he's stunned her in, Adrien helps her onto the bed and bids her goodnight.

Marinette was left to the privacy of her own screaming thoughts, where she quickly deflated lock a hot air balloon as all hot flush escaped her head.

Marinette was completely and hopelessly in love with that boy.


	11. Chapter 11

The beach episode ended on... a semi-good note, with Haruhi leaving a little earlier than the rest, the twins crying something about "BDSM".

Marinette relied on Adrien for moving around a bit, since she was still recovering from her ankle, and she only milked that opportunity as _much_ as she could.

Still... There was some guilt associated.

"I'm sorry I'm making you help me back and forth. I"m already as clumsy as ever, and a twisted ankle would only make it worse." Marinette mumbled as they walked through the doorway.

Adrien helped her sit in the living room, shaking his head. "You don't need to apologize. I should be the one apologizing." He replied.

"We're not going down that road again, Adrien." Marinette warned him.

The night of Marinette's injury, just shortly after Adrien bid Marinette a goodnight, Adrien slip into a Bad Mood, where he did come back to Marinette and... Well, unpacked his worries.

Adrien felt like a burden, felt that he wasn't worth being around. Felt bad that he couldn't be there to protect Marinette when she needed it. He felt like a terrible friend, someone that Marinette should replace as soon as possible.

Marinette gave Adrien a stern talking to, telling him that he shouldn't be talking bad about himself, and that she's glad to have become friends with him.

Putting all the model infatuation aside, Adrien was very smart and talented.

Like one time, Tamaki got roped into getting an underclassman apprentice, and both Tamaki and Adrien gave a piano performance of a lifetime. Sure, things with that apprentice didn't really work out well, but everyone was so move by Tamaki's and Adrien's duet.

How fluent he was with Japanese, and not only that, but Mandarin as well, which was a language that Marinette was still getting tongue twisted with.

The way physics and math came to him so naturally, while Marinette was just a step above being considered an absolute idiot. Okay, maybe she was exaggerating and down playing her own smarts, but that's not the point...

"The point is, Adrien, is that you aren't allowed to talk about yourself like that. Even if you weren't a model, son of France's most famous designer, and super handsome... I-I would still be friends with you. What matters most, Adrien, is your actions and your thoughts. Maybe you could have prevented me from getting hurt, but regardless, the fact that you said, 'I should have been there', proves to me how much you care."

She doesn't know where all this comes from but... That's a lie, she knew exactly where it came from and it came from the Fountain of Adoration for Adrien.

And that whole spiel was the FAA trying to make Adrien Valid.

Adrien was still a bit saddened about the whole thing with his mother , that not only did she leave her first, but both sons.

There was some resentment that Marinette helped Adrien through, despite not knowing the reasons to Mama Agreste's disappearance, but it ended up with a desperate hug and shaky breaths.

In the end, they spent the night together, Marinette telling him embarrassing pastry stories of days past, playing with his hair as he laid his head on her lap.

The weekend was unfortunately over, and while the events were still fresh in their minds, Marinette didn't want it to have ended.

Yet, here they stood (well, at least Adrien was), looking at each other with narrowed gazes.

"Listen, if I'm not allowed to apologize, then you shouldn't be able to do it either, Dupain-Cheng." Adrien huffed.

Marinette was taken aback by his address, sounding all too familiar to someone else she knew. "I guess we can agree to disagree, Agreste." She replied.

They remained quiet for a moment, their gazes still locked until Adrien broke and he smiled, a chuckle slipping through his lips.

"Will you _fur_give me?" He cooed.

"Absolutely not." Marinette replied in a heartbeat, but rolling her eyes at the cat pun. "Especially now." She finished, trying to hide the smile on her lips.

Adrien's smile grew, the two of them going about their own business.

Marinette was able to heal her ankle with the limited amount of activity in the Host Club, despite how much she still did.

They had a whole Halloween competition, where they tried to figure out who the biggest scaredy cat was. Some guy named, or well, nicknamed? Nekozawa? Was obsessed with cats, scared the living lives out of all of them.

Adrien seemed to get along with Nekosawa fairly well, much to Marinette's displeasure.

"Is it the cat thing?" Alya asked one night on a video cat.

"It's absolutely the cat thing." Marinette groans, letting her head fall into the pillows.

There was laughter. "Oh, come on, deep down, I know you like the cat stuff." Alya cooed.

There was a knock on the door and Adrien peeked his head in once Marinette gave the okay for him to come in.

"Marinette, look!" He came into the room, holding a plushy of a long, white cat. "Isn't he _purr_fect? They call him 'Longcat'!" He held the cat up to it's full length and then spun it around before he left her room.

Marinette looks over at Alya, who had been on the phone the entire time. A smirk grows on Alya's face as the silence extends between them.

"I knew it."

"Shut up." Marinette relented.

The end of the year came closer before they all realized.

Next thing they knew, they were already planning the end of the year party. It wasn't just the end of the year party for the Host Club, but it was also their annual auction, and the end of the year party for Adrien and Marinette.

Marinette was finishing pinning up the rest of her hair when there was a knock on her door.

"Come in." Marinette called from her restroom. She could hear her door open and then footsteps at the threshold of her restroom. "Adrien?" She asked, not looking away from her reflection as she tried to fix a stray hair.

When no response came, she turned to Adrien, who was just standing there, staring at her reflection.

"What?" She asked, replying to his reflection.

"You're beautiful." He murmured.

Marinette could feel a blush burning up her neck. She straightened and squared her shoulders. "You're just saying that to me because it's the host in you." She murmurs.

He chuckles lightly and he reaches to take her hand, bringing her knuckles to her lips. "I say it because it's true and you should know it." He replies against her knuckles.

She snorts lightly. "Flattery can..." Get you nowhere. "Get you many places." She replies, flicking his nose playfully,

"Will it get me a dance later at this fancy masquerade party?" He asks, giving her a gentle spin.

She giggles and shrugs teasingly. "We'll see. Unless I get swept up by another blond princely type."

Adrien made a face that cried 'I'm offended'. That made Marinette laugh. "I'm appalled.You'd let another prince court you?" He questions.

She rolls her eyes and puts on a black and red spotted mask. "Now, how do you think I'd let myself get courted by another prince when there's a specific prince who already has my heart?" She asked, turning to look at him fully now.

He put his mask on too, his emerald eyes glittering against the black of his. "Well, whoever that person is, I'm going to fight them."

Marinette giggle and patting his shoulder gently as she walked past. "Good luck fighting yourself, Adrien."

Adrien chuckled and he followed behind her, going to the door as she collected her clutch purse to head out with Adrien.

When they all made it to the ballroom, it was really a lot fancier than the two of them expected it to be.

Well, at least on Marinette's end. She's never been to such a fancy masquerade party, while Adrien has been to fancy fashion parties against his will.

Marinette liked the idea of the masquerade, the theme of the party catching her interest when Tamaki brought it up, however she was sure that Kyoya was the one who thought of it in the first place.

Each family of the hosts' had their matching colored masks. The Dupain-Chengs, who had flown to join the end of the year festivities, were wearing matching masks as Marinette.

Nathalie and Gabriel, much to Adrien's surprise, was present, and wearing masks identical to Adrien's.

It was cute, a little way of identifying which family was which, but still made everything a little more mysterious.

Adrien seemed to stiffen a little under his father's gaze and presence, but Marinette managed to soothe him while they weren't under his scrutiny.

There was fancy, nonalcoholic beverages, fancy food plates, and classy music. Everything was fairly enjoyable, the hosts interacting with their families and the rest of the party guests as well.

It was interesting to see the different families of the hosts. Marinette tried not to freak out when she noticed a woman with a matching mask of the Hitachiin family color. Tamaki was rather tame around his family, especially an older woman who refused to wear the mask and was in traditional Japanese garb.

There seemed to be some displeasure with the woman that Marinette could only assume was Tamaki's grandmother. She doesn't know much importance the Suoh family is, but by the amount of, guards maybe? That surrounded her, she must be of high importance.

The Ootori family didn't to be very pleased either, murmuring something about, 'Why couldn't he be president? Vice-president, pathetic'.

Marinette found herself frowning a lot more rather than... enjoying the party.

"Everyone's so... upset. With everyone's state and position." Marinette grumbled.

"Rich people could learn to be humble." Haruhi agreed.

Marinette bit her lip, looking around the party. Besides the hosts' family, everyone seemed to be enjoying the party.

Marinette could vaguely recognize everyone at the party. The usual guests, subjected to plain white masks, the different colored masks identified families, but there was one person that Marinette couldn't recognize. She had a black mask with golden accents and she was... Gorgeous, to say the least.

The Suoh family had gold colored, the Ootoris had lavender. The Hitachiins a light blue, the Haninozukas a light red, almost pink, while the Morinozukas had a darker blue. All other guests had white.

Marinette couldn't help but stare, wandering around the party until she bumped into Tamaki.

"Hey Princess, are you enjoying the party?" He asks, smiling as she twirls her to dance to the music.

"I'm having a good time." Marinette replies simply, smiling at his twirl. "Despite this being a masquerade ball, we kinda know all the guests here, don't we?"

He waltz with her, giving a brilliant smile. "Kyoya suggested the idea. It's a little twist to our usual course of action." He replies.

Marinette chuckles, looking towards Kyoya, who was speaking with the mystery woman. "Quick question though, do you know who that woman is?" She asks, motioning over towards Kyoya and his guest.

Tamaki turned his gaze towards her motions, humming softly. It was strange, because she was the only one in the whole party who had a mix of colors. "That's... strange. I'm not sure who she could be." He replied. "Maybe a special guest?" He questions.

"But wouldn't you, the club president, know who a special guest would be?" Marinette questions back, looking up at him.

He smiles and shrugs lightly. "Kyoya has a little more authority than me. He does a lot more than I do. So, he probably knows who she is."

"And you're going to trust him?"

"Kyoya's never lead me astray." He replies.

Marinette hums thoughtfully, curiosity peaking.

The colors on the mask, they were black with specs and details of gold.

Black was the Agrestes family color, gold was the Suoh family's color. Could it be possible that she's in both families? Does that even make sense?

While she was lost in her thoughts, the woman in black and gold watched the two of them dance. It wasn't long before Tamaki gasped and severely apologizing to Marinette before leaving.

The woman laughed as Tamaki stormed off to Haruhi, who was being asked to dance by one of the Hitachiins.

Marinette, who had been ditched, was laughing, before Adrien went up to her and asked her for a dance.

The way the two acted was shy, but the chemistry between them was obvious.

"Madame," Her sight was pulled away from Adrien and Marinette, looking to the young man who grabbed her attention. "I apologize that this will be the way that the evening will occur."

"Since you found me, Kyoya, the least I could do is partake in a little drama." She cooed.

Kyoya chuckled lightly. "There hasn't been a year where the festivities haven't ended in drama." He offers his hand to her and she takes it gingerly, following his lead.


	12. Chapter 12

"You know, at the beginning of the year, I didn't think I would find myself fancy dancing with you." Marinette admitted.

Adrien chuckles. "Neither did I." He replies. "But if I'm going to be honest, I'm glad that this year has ended the way it is."

"Once we go back home, will we still be friends?" She asked, a little bit of worry slipping in to her voice.

"Of course." He replies, giving her a spin.

"I'm glad." She murmurs, but then she hums with displeasure. "I think we're going to have to keep this from Chloe."

"Chloe Bourgeois?" He asks. Marinette nods. "How do you know her?"

"She's in my class. My friend, Alya? She was losing it when she found we were not-so-much-roommates." She rolls her eyes lightly.

Adrien chuckled. "Why is that?" He questions.

"Simply put, we don't get along peachy." Marinette replies.

Adrien couldn't help his laughter, contaging Marinette, and they were both a giggling mess as they danced.

The party continues and sure, while some of the rich people aren't as humble as Marinette would hope, but they enjoy themselves nonetheless.

"Ladies and gentlemen, our esteemed guests, it's been a great honor for you to join us this evening." Kyoya speaks up, standing up on a raised floor. "I'd like to thank Tamaki, who's our club president, who gathered you all here today. All of our members and the guests that make our club continue."

An applause went through the ballroom, some soft murmurs spreading through.

"I'd also like to give a special thank you to our exchange students, Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien Agreste, who contributed to the club during their stay here."

Another set of claps went through the ballroom, a little more noisy as Marinette's parents got in the mix. She blushed, waving her hand to get them to settle down.

"Our club thanks you for your participation and patronage on behalf of our auction, but I would like to thank a special guest, who made a special contribution to today." The woman with the mixed mask joins Kyoya on the raised floor silently. "Adrien and Tamaki, if you could please join us." Kyoya asks.

Adrien straightened as his name was called and he looked to Marinette. "He asked for me?" He points to himself.

Marinette nodded, ushering him forward.

The two of them went to Kyoya, seeing that practiced smile on his lips. The woman next to him was looking at Adrien, smiling softly, before she looked to Tamaki.

  
The woman, her eyes, they held some softness that Adrien thought was familiar, but couldn't put his finger to it...

"What's up, Kyoya?" Tamaki asks, looking at the special guest with a polite smile before focusing back on Kyoya.

"Madame Emilie, if you will." Kyoya gives her a nod.

She gave a nod as well, reaching up to remove her mask. When she removed her mask and looked up, Adrien gasped.

"Mama?" Adrien whispers.

She smiles and nods, holding her arms out to him. "Hello, my sunshine."

Adrien laughed breathlessly, running into his mother and embracing her tightly.

They hugged, tightly, lovingly, both of them in near tears.

The moment was no so much ruined when Tamaki spoke up. "Mama...?"

Adrien pulls away from the hug slightly, looking to Tamaki, who was starstruck.

Tamaki never really knew his mother. She had left him shortly after being born. There were no photos of her, and it was forbidden to speak about her, ask questions about her.

It wasn't long ago that Kyoya revealed that Adrien and him were half-brothers, meaning that they shared the same mother. Which ultimately meant that the woman before him was his mother.

"Tamaki," she spoke softly. "My beautiful boy. You... You're so handsome." She extended a hand out to him and he raised his hand to place it on hers, but he hesitated.

This was the woman who walked out of his life, and not just his life, but his half-brother's life too. Who... What's to guarantee that she won't do it again? How did she get here? How was it--

"Tamaki."

A voice brought him out of his racing thoughts, and he looked beside him. It was Haruhi, giving him a reassuring smile. "Go on." She ushered softly.

Tamaki gave a robotic nod and he took steps forward, his hand gently sitting on top of Emilie's.

"Tamaki, I'd like you to official meet our mother, Emilie Agreste." Adrien introduces.

Tamaki watches as Emilie takes his hand and clasps it between her two. She sniffles lightly and steps closer, bringing his hand to her chest and placing one hand on his cheek.

"My boy... Look at you, so tall, so handsome. I'm sorry... I'm sorry I abandoned you, my sweet boy." She murmurs, looking up at him.

"Mama." He tests the word and Emilie smiles, giving a watery chuckle.

"Yes, that's me." She replies.

Tamaki chuckles and leans into her hand, before he steps forward and hugs her tightly. There's some familiarity in her voice, and Tamaki can only assume that it's his childhood memories of his mother rising from the dust.

Eventually, the two break and they give half quiet sobs and laughs, before starting a group hug with Adrien.

"My two boys, together, with me." Emilie mused. "I'm so sorry I left you both." She apologizes.

The boys were going to ask their own barrage of questions, until applause spread across the ballroom.

They all kind of forgot that they were having this touching moment with an audience. The three of them wiped their faces of any loose tears, laughing quietly among themselves.

Kyoya was going to usher them somewhere more quiet, but as Kyoya started to lead them away, they were stopped.

"Emilie." There was a man with a golden mask, fumbling to take it off.

"Dad." Tamaki starts.

"Yuzuru." Emilie speaks up. There's fondness in her voice that makes the man in front of them chuckle softly.

"It's really you." He replies, breathless.

There's a smile on her face as she nods. "Yes, it is." She replies.

Yuzuru is about to take steps to bound to her, when another voice comes from behind.

"Emile."

She stops and she looks back, seeing Gabriel. He was clutching his mask in his hand, his eyes narrowing on the woman beside her son.

"Gabriel." She replies shortly.

"Where have you been? I have been searching everywhere for you." He's taking steps closer to Emilie, but the manner in which he's approaching makes her take a few back.

Gabriel processes that and he stops, eyebrows furrowing. "You left your family. You left us, disappeared off the radar, had another family?"

"I happen to be older than Adrien, sir." Tamaki interjected. "Plus, I'd appreciate it if you didn't speak to my mother in such an accusatory tone."

Gabriel narrowed his gaze upon Tamaki. "This has nothing to do with you, young man." He sneered.

"Don't you talk to him like that." Emilie demanded, stepping forward. "There were many reasons, albeit not justifiable ones, that I left you, Gabriel." She said, coming down to jab him in the chest with a finger.

"Once you signed your label, you got consumed with your work. You cared nothing for your own wife and son, despite how much we asked for you. Your work was far too important than your own blood."

"And you thought leaving was going to solve this issue?" He questioned.

"Of course not. If anything, I was going to bring Adrien with me." She pauses to breathe, looking to the two boys. "Tamaki's father was looking for me, and I was no longer safe in Paris. I didn't want to leave my sunshine behind, but I did, with the hopes that he would bring you back to your ways."

Emilie looks back to Gabriel, giving him a distasteful once over. "And from what I can tell, it was obviously a mistake."

Gabriel searched for words, but before he could say anything, Adrien stepped forward.

"Mama? What did you mean by you were 'no longer safe in Paris'? What's going on?" He questions, concerned for his mother's well-being.

And as fate would allow it, Tamaki's paternal grandmother, Shizue, came forward.

"You!" She pointed a finger, stopping short of Emilie. "How _dare_ you show your face here? How dare you, in such a place like this, come back?"

Emilie couldn't help the small steps she took back as Tamaki's grandmother attacked her.

"You were, you _are_ nothing but a lowly commoner, a good for nothing maid--"

"Grandmother!" Tamaki spoke up, standing in front of his mother. "I will not let you speak about my mother that way!"

Both Adrien and Tamaki took a stand between Emilie and Shizue.

"Mother? What's the meaning of this?" Yuzuru asks, coming to Tamaki's side, eyebrows furrowed.

"That woman, she's going to be the downfall to our family." She argued, pointing a finger at Emilie.

"What did you do?" Yuzuru asked.

"What I did, I did it for _you_\--"

"Mother, what did you _do_?" Yuzuru demanded.

The old woman glared up at her son, refusing to relent.

"Mr. Suoh, if I may step in." Kyoya spoke up. "Shortly after Tamaki's birth, Mrs. Shizue ordered Emilie to leave Japan without a trace. Under the impression that an out of wedlock childbirth and Emilie's status of a ''commoner', as Mrs. Shizue put it, she fled to give both you and your son a better life."

Yuzuru looked over to Emilie and she merely ducked her head.

"She fled to France, discovered her desire to pursue fashion, and when she enrolled into fashion design school for modeling, she met Mr. Agreste."

All eyes turned to Gabriel, who didn't shift under their scrutiny.

  
"They worked together and got married, having Adrien shortly after."

The attention shifted to Adrien now, and he shrunk slightly under their gazes, until Emilie put a hand on his shoulder.

"Things were quite good for a while, until Gabriel signed his label." She rubbed Adrien's shoulder with a sad smile. "Things were going well, escalating almost too quickly, when Gabriel got lost in his work and neglected us."

"A private detective was contracted by Emilie, to find out about the Suohs, and that's when she found out that Mr. Suoh hired detectives of his own." Kyoya continued.

"Afraid of the harm I could cause the Suohs, and make my marriage rougher than it already was... I made the decision to pack my things and leave again." Emilie sucked in a shaky breath. "I'm not especially proud of my decisions, I was heartbroken to leave another one of my boys."

Both Adrien and Tamaki turned to her, gently trying to soothe her.

"I went to Portugal, made my own small fashion career there. I was doing relatively okay, always following, trying to hear, to watch anything in regards to my boys And it wasn't until a few short months ago, when Kyoya reached out to me." She looked to him, taking his hand and giving him a gentle squeeze. "And I couldn't be anymore grateful."

"The pleasure's all mine."

"Well, it's been an entertaining story to hear, but now I think it's time we go home. Emilie, Adrien, let's go." Gabriel said, turning.

"No." Emilie spoke up, stopping Gabriel. "I'm not going home with you. That's the last place I'd like to go."

Garbiel narrowed his gaze at her. "Very well." He spoke after a while. "I'll file for divorce. Adrien, let's go."

Gabriel takes a couple steps forward, noticing that neither Adrien or Nathalie not following behind. He stops, nearly glaring at Adrien. "Adrien." He repeats a little more sternly.

Adrien flinches, but before he can take any steps to comply, the Dupain-Chengs and Tamaki had come to step forward to stop him.

"Adrien doesn't have to go anywhere with you, Mr. Agreste" Marinette stated. As much as it intimidated her to talk back to her fashion idol, she would take a stand for Adrien.

"He should choose whom he'd like to stay with." Tamaki continued.

Gabriel made no effort to hide his glare. "Well, Adrien?"

" I want to stay with my mother." He replied.

Gabriel's glare hardened and he huffed. "Very well." He turned, walking out of the ballroom.

Nathalie faltered to follow immediately, going to Marinette and taking her hand with a light squeeze. "Thank you." She whispered, before ruffling Adrien's hair with a soft smile. "Be good."

"Thank you for everything, Nathalie." Adrien replied, before she nodded and went after Gabriel.

There was some silence before some scattered applause grew louder.

Adrien rubbed the back of his neck nervously, but he was pulled into a hug by Emilie and Tamaki, shortly followed by Marinette.

"I apologize for all the family drama." Emilie told Tamaki and Kyoya.

Tamaki chuckled. "It's okay, the Host Club is used to a little drama." He takes his mother's hand and kisses her knuckles. "However, I do think you should apologize to someone else instead." He turned her, and they were both facing Yuzuru.

A soft smile rested on his lips. "My Emilie." He spoke fondly.

"Yuzuru." She replied with the same fondness.


	13. Chapter 13

_A couple years later_

"It's okay, we've got the bags." Adrien told the driver as they exit the car. Adrien turns to help Marinette out of the car, the two of them going to the boot of the car to unload their things.

It's not long before there's some barks and a golden retriever is bounding down the stairs to them.

"Antoinette!" Adrien smiles, the dog nearly tackling him to the ground. He scratches her ears playfully and it's not long before another golden thing is coming down to greet them.

"Adrien! Marinette! Welcome back!" Tamaki called. Tamaki went to give Adrien a hug, before going to give Marinette a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks for having us over, Tamaki." Marinette says.

Tamaki scoffs. "You don't have to thank me for anything! You're family!" He grins.

"Has mama made it back yet?" Adrien asks, shrugging a bag onto his shoulder.

"Not yet, but she's on the way." Tamaki replied, helping Adrien with the bags.

"Who's all here?" Marinette asks, giving Antoinette a good couple pats.

"A better question would be, who's not here?" Tamaki beams.

Marinette is currently going through fashion school, her dream for working through the Agreste Line was ruined by stepping into family affairs at the Suoh vs Agreste vs Emilie thing. Still, while one dream job was out of the picture, she still had her fingers crossed that she would be able to intern for Hitachiin Fashions.

Through Nathalie, Adrien continues to work through the Agreste Line, as a model. While modeling was part time, he was currently in university to become a physics teacher.

Emilie and Gabriel went through with the divorce, the only thing Emilie asking for was the custody of Adrien, or whatever remained left of it anyway.

Garbiel wasn't pleased with the result of things, but allowed Adrien to continue to model if he wished.

Emilie and Yuzuru, after having a long talk with Shizune, were able to rekindle their relationship and start anew.

While Emilie had to travel between Portugal for her business, or France to see the Dupain-Chengs, every summer, they all found themselves gathered at the Main Suoh Estate, to spend the summer holiday together.

An overseas program that was meant to be an escape from the normal, turned out to be a dramatic turn of events. They found long lost family, made new family, soaking in all the love and affection everyone could give.

And while they their group hug ended up leading them to fall into the pond fountain, they laughed, splashing each other.

Besides, a little water never hurt anybody.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first fic I kinda sat down and wrote out a whole outline to. I started working on this in February and it took me a good six months to complete and type it out. I'm fairly proud of myself. Take that, you piece of shit depression!


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